Amazon launches delivery service in Sydney and Melbourne

Amazon has launched its own crowdsourced delivery service to speed up deliveries, called Amazon Flex.

Launched in Sydney and Melbourne, the delivery service offers a Uber-like 'gig' service, with private individuals delivering Amazon packages to customers. Amazon hopes this will expand its delivery network, ramp up at peak times, and ultimately speed up deliveries for customers.

Flex has been operating in the US since 2015 and is part of Amazon's drive to grow its own logistics services and become less reliant on other providers, such as FedEx, which last year refused to renew parts of its contract with Amazon. Amazon US has been investing in its own in-house network of shipping and delivery services, including delivery service partners a network of local delivery truck drivers with Prime logos. The company has also been buying planes and trucks.

Time will tell if it plans on doing the same thing in Australia and what this may mean for local delivery partners. However, Flex has not been without criticism in the US, with drivers saying they make US$18 to $25 an hour, but they are responsible for costs like petrol, tolls and maintenance, meaning the rate is not always worth the time it takes.

“Amazon Flex puts delivery partners in the driver’s seat, enabling them to earn extra money with the flexibility to choose their own schedule. With visibility of how much they will be paid for a block before they accept it, delivery partners ensure their time on the road is well spent,” Amazon Australia director of operations, Craig Fuller, said. 

“As customer demand and delivery needs continue to grow in Australia, Amazon Flex gives us the agility to supplement the work we do with our existing carrier partners so we can speed up delivery times and respond to peaks in demand. At Amazon, we work backwards from the customer and, with our team of innovators, Amazon Flex give us the flexibility over time to unlock customer delivery benefits we haven’t even thought of yet.”

Interested delivery partners in Sydney and Melbourne with their own vehicle can sign-up, choose delivery blocks that fit their schedule, and deliver packages using the Amazon Flex app.

Delivery blocks are an estimated at four hours, during which delivery partners collect their packages from pick up points in Sydney and Melbourne and deliver them to customers. Delivery partners will know the estimated duration and minimum payment for each block in advance, and will receive payments weekly by direct deposit.

Amazon Flex participants will join a community of traditional carriers who the company said will continue to deliver to customers in Australia.

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