Research and mapping of courier waiting times and locations, and their needs, to propose inclusive urban and architectural features.
PROJECT PRESENTATION
The Covid-19 health crisis triggered an exponential demand for home deliveries of meals in particular; the delivery profession was then defined as "essential to everyday life". Since then, some 10,000 delivery drivers criss-cross the capital, dependent on FoodTech algorithms.
Their day is sequenced between unpaid waiting and order delivery. Our study focuses on these waiting times, particularly in the afternoon. The remoteness of their living quarters and the hope of a new errand lead to community gathering points in areas benefiting from favorable geolocation.
Exposed in this way, couriers are urged to make themselves invisible. In the 17th arrondissement of Paris, the town council, together with Uber Eats and Deliveroo, has set up a dedicated parking zone for these workers at the junction of Boulevard Berthier and Avenue de Villiers, to reduce noise pollution in the vicinity of restaurants. A parking lot too far from the busy areas.
Our proposal arose from a desire to understand how delivery drivers occupy public space, and to offer support services to this marginalized profession as a whole.
A pilot project has been launched thanks to the City of Paris and the CoopCycle association. Open since September 2021, the Maison des Coursiers (18th arrondissement) welcomes delivery drivers four days a week, free of charge. A place where they can rest, have a coffee or reheat their meals, but also get administrative and legal support. Although it is well used today, its location is not strategic and the premises, shared with other associations, do not allow for permanent opening.
A preliminary survey and mapping exercise will enable us to analyze couriers' waiting times and locations, define their needs, and identify the potential in the city of Paris for proposing inclusive urban and architectural arrangements. The scale, permanence and program of interventions will be adapted to the situations encountered.
PROJECT LEADERS
Julie Pommier, associate architect with Augure Studio and associate lecturer at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure d'Architecture de Clermont-Ferrand;
Iana Vicq, associate architect with Augure Studio;
Circé Lienart, coordinator of the Maison des Coursiers (18th arrondissement) for the CoopCycle association.
Julie Pommier and Iana Vicq founded Augure Studio in Paris in 2021 after a European career spanning more than ten years. Their practice combines project management, research and teaching. It is based on cross-disciplinary theoretical work.
Augure Studio advocates conscious architecture. Integrated into its history and uses.
Sensitive to the signs of an economic, social and environmental context.
Circé Lienart, coordinator of the Maison des Coursiers, has been part of the CoopCycle association since 2017, investing in building a cooperative and social alternative to traditional delivery platforms.
In September 2021, in line with its commitment to uberized workers, the association opened the Maison des Coursiers, located at 70 boulevard Barbès in Paris. Circé Lienart coordinates this innovative project, which offers a place dedicated not only to rest, but also to administrative, legal and union support for delivery drivers facing the precariousness of their work. This initiative enables her to accompany these often ignored workers on a daily basis, thus bearing witness to their realities. Since its opening, the Maison des Coursiers has welcomed over 850 delivery drivers, providing a valuable source of interaction for understanding and dialoguing with these often invisible couriers in the urban fabric.
