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 to these challenges and what happens when competition and cooperation collide in the last mile.
One of the most visible examples is the rapid growth of parcel lockers and collection points. In theory, these locations should reduce the inefficiencies of home delivery. If customers collect their parcels at shared points, delivery routes might become shorter, trucks are better filled, and fewer delivery attempts fail.
In practice, however, things work differently. Mercurio shows that delivery companies often choose locker locations from a competitive perspective rather than from a system perspective. Using game-theory models, he demonstrates that competing firms tend to place lockers close to one another. This creates clusters of lockers in the same locations while other neighbourhoods remain underserved. The result is duplication instead of efficiency.
This is where municipalities can play an important role. Cities can stimulate coordination among operators or set spatial conditions for locker placement to ensure a more equitable distribution across neighbourhoods.
Another interesting finding concerns shared parcel locker networks. Some delivery companies are already experimenting with open locker systems where multiple carriers use the same infrastructure. The key question then becomes: how do you share the costs and revenues fairly?
Using cooperative game theory, Mercurio shows that there are usually workable solutions. If costs and benefits are allocated carefully, companies can remain competitors while still cooperating in shared infrastructure.
The same principle applies higher up in the supply chain. Freight consolidation networks, where parcels from multiple carriers are transported together, can significantly improve efficiency. But they require strong coordination and advanced IT systems to exchange operational data.
Mercurio’s research highlights a crucial lesson for city logistics: consolidation strategies only work when competition is balanced with cooperation. Without coordination, companies optimise their own networks. With the right governance and incentives, they can also optimise the system. For cities facing growing e-commerce volumes, that difference matters.
Check out Mercurio’s thesis here.
Read more: What role can municipalities play in implementing parcel lockers?
Also read: Dutch Cities Move to Regulate Parcel Locker Growth