When Los Angeles plunged into lockdown during the COVID-19 crisis, Zhao Yang’s electric bike became a lifeline. The 28-year-old food deliveryman has kept neighborhoods fed as restaurants shuttered and households turned to takeout as their ‘new normal’. 🚀
From Noodles to Neighborhood Bonds
Zhao, who once juggled gigs as a part-time chef, now navigates eerily quiet streets to hand off everything from tacos to vegan sushi. ‘Before, it was just a job,’ he says in an exclusive interview. ‘Now, customers wave from windows like I’m bringing hope with their pad thai.’ 🥡
The Unsafe Safety Net
With contactless delivery, his gloves have become second skin. But risks linger: ‘My mom in Fujian video-calls daily to remind me about masks,’ he laughs. Still, he stays – driven by community need and the surge in app-based orders that now fund his film school dreams. 🎥
As LA cautiously reopens, Zhao’s story mirrors millions worldwide: essential workers rewriting resilience on two wheels. 🌆
