The Bicycle Courier Through the Years

For much of the twentieth century, the fastest way to send a document across a busy city was to put it in the hands of a young person on a bicycle. Banks, lawyers, advertising agencies and newspapers all relied on messengers to carry contracts, photographs and letters that could not wait for the post. Long before email and electronic signatures, a firm's ability to get a signed paper to the other side of town before the end of the day could decide whether a deal went ahead or failed. In some cities, a single large bank might employ a dozen messengers of its own, while smaller firms called on outside companies whenever something needed to be delivered.

The earliest messenger services date back to the late nineteenth century, when telegraph companies employed boys, some as young as twelve, to deliver telegrams on foot or by bicycle. The work was poorly paid and the hours were long, but it offered a first job to many young people from poor families, and some went on to senior positions within the companies that employed them. Messengers wore smart uniforms and caps, and they were expected to be polite at all times, as they were often the only employee of the company that a customer ever met.

The modern cycle courier, however, is largely a product of the 1970s and 1980s. As traffic in city centres grew heavier, motorbikes and vans became slower and less reliable over short distances, while a skilled cyclist could weave through queues of stationary cars. Courier companies multiplied, and the riders developed a distinctive culture of their own, with their own slang, clothing and meeting places. Most were self-employed and were paid for each delivery rather than by the hour, which meant that speed translated directly into income.

The work was organised by dispatchers, who sat in small offices with a radio and a map, deciding which rider should take each job. A good dispatcher knew the strengths of every rider: who knew the narrow streets of the old financial district, who could be trusted with fragile packages, and who was fast enough for the most urgent deliveries. Riders, in turn, depended on the dispatcher for their income, since a rider who was overlooked for the best jobs could earn very little in a day. The relationship between the two was often tense, but many former couriers remember it with affection.

This system brought obvious dangers. Riders under pressure to complete as many jobs as possible were tempted to take risks, and accidents were common. Because they were not employees, couriers who were injured usually received no sick pay, and they had to buy and repair their own bicycles. In several cities, riders formed associations to campaign for better conditions, and some succeeded in persuading companies to pay a minimum rate for each job, regardless of distance, although such agreements were rarely written into contracts.

By the late 1990s, many people predicted that the profession would disappear. Documents that had once been carried by hand could now be sent instantly by fax and then by email, and the number of couriers in many cities fell sharply. Yet the job did not vanish; it changed. Some items, such as original legal papers, medical samples and computer parts, still had to be moved physically, and couriers who specialised in this kind of work continued to find customers. Hospitals in particular came to rely on cyclists to carry blood samples quickly between sites.

More recently, the growth of online shopping and food delivery has created a new generation of riders, many of whom find work through smartphone apps rather than a dispatcher's radio. Electric cargo bikes, which can carry loads of more than a hundred kilograms, are now being used to deliver parcels in city centres where councils are trying to reduce pollution and congestion. Some veteran couriers are sceptical about these changes, arguing that app-based work leaves riders even less protected than before. Others welcome the attention that cycle delivery is receiving. Either way, the cyclist racing through traffic with a bag on their back seems likely to remain a familiar sight on city streets.