by Walther Ploos van Amstel
In cities around the world, logistics plays a crucial but often invisible role. From early morning supermarket deliveries to the increasing number of parcel vans navigating through neighborhoods, urban freight is an integral part of daily life. Yet, despite its importance, city logistics remains under-researched and poorly understood, mainly due to a lack of good …
Last-mile delivery is under increasing pressure. With booming e-commerce, growing urban congestion, and mounting sustainability targets, cities struggle to keep deliveries efficient, affordable, and clean. This thesis investigates how optimization models can help last-mile logistics adapt, balancing operational efficiency with environmental and regulatory demands. A recent Ph.D. Thesis by Pinar Ozyavas addresses the issues around optimizing …
Denmark’s municipalities will soon have the option to prohibit polluting vehicles in designated areas, with plans already underway in several cities. Last week, a political majority approved legislation allowing municipalities to establish zero-emission zones starting in early 2025. Under the new legislation, municipal councils can choose between two types of zero-emission zones: one that applies …
The transport sector in Germany is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, highlighting the urgent need for innovative and sustainable transport solutions. While cargo bikes have proven effective in urban settings, their potential in rural areas remains underexplored. To address this gap, RADLÄR, a newly launched research project, aims to identify the needs, applications, …
Electrification offers a promising pathway for decarbonizing the road freight transport system. Assessing the impact of electrification on the road freight transport system requires understanding the dynamics from a system-level perspective. Isolated technical or financial analyses, such as comparing the total cost of ownership between electric and diesel trucks, are helpful but only reflect limited …
Approximately 12,000 vans enter the city daily via the Amsterdam A10 Ring Road, around 15% of which are from service logistics companies. The pilot project with service hubs aims to explore how these hubs can help reduce traffic congestion, parking issues, and air pollution in the city. A pilot project will begin with a ‘klushub‘ …
Parking for loading and unloading in urban areas is minimal, requiring shared use among various users. Despite its importance, delivery drivers’ attitudes and preferences regarding parking in city environments have not been extensively studied. A recent paper addresses this gap by analyzing survey data from delivery drivers in the northeastern United States. Using stated preference …
The current state of data on urban logistics traffic patterns is inadequate. The available data are often limited, inconsistent, outdated, and costly. Recent research explored innovative methods for collecting urban freight data and making it accessible to policymakers and researchers. It focuses on three case studies: Rotterdam (Netherlands), Brussels (Belgium), and Barcelona (Spain). These case …
Dutch Secretary of State for the Environment, Jansen, has not ruled out the possibility of reversing the zero-emission zones. The government will soon decide whether to delay certain municipalities’ zero-emission zones for delivery vans and trucks. “Municipalities have the right to implement these zones on January 1st, but we have the authority to steer them …
New York City Department of Transportation (NYC DOT) Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez announced new incentives to help reduce truck deliveries during the busiest hours to improve traffic safety, protect the environment, and combat daytime congestion and double-parking. The agency will allocate $6 million to incentivize businesses receiving deliveries overnight. NYC DOT’s Off-Hour Delivery program (OHD) will provide financial …