Few logistics questions seem more mundane than where to put a parcel locker. Research papers in Urban Logistics Transformation (Springer, 2026) make a compelling case that this is actually one of the most consequential spatial planning decisions a city can make; touching on equity, emissions, local commerce, and the circular economy all at once.
Location is everything — but most cities leave it to the market
The chapter by Ferran and Axinte opens with a deceptively simple observation: parcel lockers only reduce emissions if people walk or cycle to collect their parcels. When recipients drive — as almost a third of consumers do, according to French data — the environmental case for out-of-home delivery collapses. This means that locker placement is not a logistics detail; it is a mobility and sustainability decision.
Their case study in Groningen demonstrates what a proactive, data-driven approach looks like in practice. Using space syntax analysis to identify streets with the highest cycling flows, combined with population density mapping and the city’s own mobility hub strategy, the researchers identified 10 optimal public locations for parcel lockers that would be accessible on foot or by bike for the vast majority of residents. Crucially, they also mapped gaps in existing private networks, finding that while PostNL and DHL offer reasonable cycling coverage, pedestrian access is much weaker, leaving specific neighborhoods underserved. Rather than waiting for the market to fill those gaps, Groningen chose to act as a service provider itself.
The policy recommendations that follow are sensible and replicable: cities should prioritize open, carrier-agnostic locker networks over the proliferation of single-brand closed systems; they should use their control over public land as a lever to set location, design, and accessibility requirements; and they should require data reporting from operators so that coverage gaps can be identified before they become entrenched.
The French experience: a rapidly shifting landscape
The chapter on Valence Romans Mobilités adds an important real-world dimension. Between 2023 and 2025 alone, the number of out-of-home delivery points on their territory grew by 50%, while nearly 30% of existing points closed. Parcel lockers quadrupled in number in two years, from 24 to 97, partly driven by Mondial Relay’s strategic decision to close around 3,500 staffed pick-up points nationally and replace them with automated machines.
This churn is not just a logistics story. When a staffed pick-up point closes in a village pharmacy or a local newsagent, those businesses lose a modest but meaningful income stream and the personal contact that comes with parcel handling. The chapter is careful not to romanticize the status quo, but it does highlight that the shift to automation carries social costs that aggregate-level emissions data simply do not capture.
Pickup points as urban infrastructure — not just delivery infrastructure
The final chapter by Horemans reframes the entire debate. Staffed pickup points, he argues, are not just a last-mile logistics solution — they are potential community anchors. Beyond handling parcels, they can serve as temporary storage for local tradespeople, collection points for furniture waste under France’s extended producer responsibility regulations, departure hubs for cargo bike delivery operations, and even access points for basic services in neighborhoods where banks and post offices have disappeared.
This reframing matters because it changes who has a stake in the outcome. If pickup points are merely logistics infrastructure, their fate is determined by courier companies optimizing their networks. If they are urban service hubs, they become a concern for municipal planners, social equity advocates, and sustainability policymakers, too.
The chapters together make a quiet but important argument: out-of-home delivery is growing fast; its environmental impact depends heavily on choices that cities can influence; and the window to shape those choices proactively (rather than clean up after the market) is open now but not indefinitely.
Based on chapters 14, 15, and 16 of Urban Logistics Transformation (Springer, 2026), by Ferran & Axinte, Ballois et al., and Horemans.
Also read: What role can municipalities play in implementing parcel lockers?