United Parcel Service (UPS) employees might be best known for their big brown trunks, but lately they’ve been seen driving other vehicles around as well.

Employees with the Evergreen center, which also covers the Atmore area, have been participating in the UPS’s “trike bike” campaign. The program is designed to help UPS improve the environment, by delivering some of its cargo on cleaner, efficient electric-powered “trike bikes.”

“The idea is to not only look out for the better benefit of our customers, but for the environment as well,” said Michael Delaney, on-car supervisor for the Evergreen center of UPS.

During the program, a temporary worker is dropped off in a neighborhood or apartment complex with an electric trike and trailer. A pod is located in that neighborhood, typically with the cooperation of a homeowner or business in the area.

The temporary worker pulls packages from the pod and delivers them throughout the neighborhood. Batteries are charged overnight at the terminal, and the trike and trailer are scored at the pod location.

The electric trikes are manufactured by the HummingBike company, which claims they can travel up to 30 miles on a single charge. It takes six to eight hours to charge a trike, and the cost is about 10 cents. As a result, UPS drivers can get the equivalent of 900 miles for the price of a single gallon of gas.

The trikes reach speeds of up to 18 mph, making them ideal for delivery in smaller or congested streets.