by Walther Ploos van Amstel
In the era of e-commerce and climate change, sustainability in last-mile delivery is an important factor. More online shopping and more fast shipping mean more vehicles on the road with lower utilization, higher frequency of deliveries, and more stops per route. These conditions have a direct impact on the environmental footprint of last mile.
The European Union wants to bring more climate-friendly cars on the road by 2030. New cars should produce 37,5 percent less CO2 than in 2021 (95 grams per Kilometer). For light commercial vehicles, the 2030 target is set at a CO2 reduction of 31 percent. The automotive industry criticized the new rules as excessive and unrealistic.
People complain on social media about light commercial vehicles (LCVs) in their neighborhood. There are too many, it’s not safe and not healthy. Is that criticism justified? Only 2 to 3 percent of the nearly 1 million LCVs in the Netherlands are involved in the delivering home shopping parcels to consumers.
City Logistics comprises of a vast variety of supply networks, each with its own service demands driven by the particular wishes of the end-customer. This heterogeneity is reflected in the wide variation in the means of transport used, from cargo bikes to 18-metre truck-trailer combinations.
Lots of attention has been given in recent years to the “massive” increase in delivery traffic in cities and residential districts. Web stores and the vans that deliver their parcels often get the blame for that. My neighbors wonder if it really can’t all just fit into one delivery van. They see PostNL, DHL, Albert …
The International Road transport Union (IRU) published a report on the commercial vehicle of the future based on three scenario’s (short term, mid term, long term), in terms of improvements in CO2 emissions, safety and operational efficiency. The report presents a roadmap towards fully sustainable truck operations for long haul, regional delivery, and urban delivery.
In recent years the transport sector has booked tremendous gains in terms of improving air quality. Unfortunately, its CO2 emissions have increased over the past 30 years, despite the major advances that other sectors have made in that area. During the 2016 National Climate Change Conference, various companies, levels of government and civil society organisations …