by Walther Ploos van Amstel
In the past two years, Ecorys supported the European Commission via the ‘Study on urban mobility – Preparation of EU guidelines on urban logistics’. This study was led by a consortium formed by Ecorys, University of Antwerp, University of Lisbon, and Prof. Laetitia Dablanc.
Crowdshipping might seem the ultimate solution for city logistics, though executing a seamless operation with outdated systems can be a hassle. If the correct tools are not used properly, companies could spend too much time labeling, sorting and routing shipments .
Udelv unveiled its autonomous, electric, last-mile delivery vehicle and made the first public road test deliveries from Draeger’s Market in San Mateo to two nearby customers. The deliver route was a 3 kilometre loop with traffic lights, lane changes, unsignalized left turns and two delivery stops.
Urban Consolidation Centres (UCCs) are often conceived as an enabler to alleviate negative effects associated with distribution of goods in cities, such as traffic congestion and hazardous emissions. UCCs not only have the potential to reduce these effects but also provide alternative distribution solutions by introducing new transhipment points.
More European cities see construction logistics as part of urban freight policies, but also a lot of European cities do not have any initiatives yet. However, the awareness to deal with urban construction logistics is growing. These are the conclusions of the latest SUCCESS-report on the experience and maturity of 12 European cities in construction logistics.
Industry is collaborating on a new programme designed to minimise the impact of the increasing amount of construction in London and to ultimately improve safety and air quality. The Construction Logistics programme, delivered in association with Transport for London and the Chartered Institute for Logistics and Transport, sees a broad range of industry involvement and …
Rapid urban growth has posed both challenges and opportunities for city planners, not in the least when it comes to the design of urban freight systems. But urbanization also fosters innovation and sharing, which have led to new models for organizing urban freight, e.g. crowd based logistics.
Up to now, the impact of city logistics on enhancing air quality within urban areas has been restricted. While the emphasis on adopting clean vehicles is beneficial for air quality, it is essential to address the creation of economically viable, essential, and health-promoting city centers and neighborhoods in formulating urban freight policies. The central focus …
Home deliveries are the preferred method of delivery for consumers today. But, due to the specific, costly nature of home deliveries together with changes within society e.g. people working longer and more flexible hours and the competition between logistics providers, new more sustainable alternatives are being implemented. Automated parcel lockers being such an alternative.
To increase the benefits of a UCC in city logistics, the delivery to the final customers from the UCC can be done using light electric freight vehicles. These LEFV provide numerous operational benefits due to their smaller size while being more sustainable than regular light commercial vans.