by Walther Ploos van Amstel
E-commerce has changed urban logistics fundamentally. Orders are smaller, destinations are more dispersed, and customers expect fast delivery within narrow time windows. The result is familiar in many cities: more vans on the streets, lower vehicle utilisation, and increasing pressure on urban space. In his recent PhD research, Fabio Mercurio explores how delivery companies respond …
Some innovations change the world. Others mainly change the way we think about the future. Hardt Hyperloop, declared bankrupt this week, probably belongs to that second category. Yet that does not mean its significance for logistics and transport has disappeared. Over the past years, Hardt worked step by step on that idea. In Veendam, a …
This report by the Dutch Topsector Logistiek, &Morgen and TwynstraGudde examines how the growing demand for urban logistics can be efficiently and sustainably accommodated within limited urban space. The authors distinguish between different types of logistics hubs and conclude that carriers’ commercial interests often conflict with municipalities’ societal objectives. Using the Double Diamond methodology, real-world …
Amsterdam wants to turn the clock back 150 years. The canals, once the city’s economic lifelines, are being repositioned as arteries for supplying leisure venues and retail in the inner city. After years of pilot projects, a commercial freight boat service has now started operating between the Westelijk Havengebied and the city centre, including the …
The receiver is the forgotten director of urban logistics. But what do we actually know about the receiver? Last week I wrote about stricter restrictions on heavy freight traffic in city centres. From the perspective of vulnerable quay walls and urban liveability, these measures are understandable. Yet in cities such as Utrecht and Amsterdam, they …
The Dutch construction sector purchases nearly 49 million tonnes of materials annually (excluding soil, sand, and clay), while only about 20 million tonnes become available from demolition and renovation. Demand is therefore roughly 2.5 times higher than the sector’s own secondary supply. This structural gap lies at the heart of the circular construction challenge. Recent …
Ten years ago, I gave up my car. It was the best decision I ever made. Public transport, taxis, walking, cycling. In a small city like Amsterdam, you can go a long way without owning a vehicle. I rent a car only when absolutely necessary, four to six times a year. Often it is inconvenient, …
A comparative routing-based analysis shows that battery electric vehicles are most efficient for short and medium urban routes, while hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are better suited for longer inter-urban missions. Decoupled logistics models using micro-hubs and cargo bikes reduce curbside occupation by up to 80%, significantly improving public-space efficiency. Sustainable urban freight transitions require combining …
Europe is pushing hard for a sustainable, smart, and inclusive transport system. The logic is straightforward: if we want cleaner cities, resilient supply chains, and competitive logistics, we need better coordination across modes, across borders, and across public–private boundaries. Digitalisation is the lever, and data spaces are becoming the infrastructure behind it. Step 1 — …
Urban freight transport is under increasing pressure. Rapid urbanization, the growth of e-commerce, and stricter climate targets are forcing cities to rethink how last-mile logistics (LML) is organized. Against this backdrop, Sobrino et al. (2026) propose a novel sustainability impact assessment framework and apply it to an Urban Consolidation Center (UCC) in Madrid’s city center. …