The transition to electric urban freight vehicles is often presented as a straightforward vehicle-replacement exercise: replace diesel vans and trucks with electric ones, and emissions disappear. In reality, the challenge is much broader. Vehicle range, charging time, route planning, grid capacity, and charging infrastructure all become critical operational variables.
A recent Italian study examines one possible solution that deserves more attention in city logistics policy and practice: shared charging hubs. The researchers investigated whether logistics operators could improve performance by sharing charging facilities rather than relying solely on their own depots’ charging infrastructure.
Why charging hubs matter
One of the biggest barriers to electric freight adoption remains operational uncertainty. Transport operators worry about vehicle range, charging times, infrastructure availability, and the cost of installing private charging facilities. These concerns become even more relevant for smaller carriers and urban distribution companies operating from depots located far from delivery areas.
The idea behind shared charging hubs is simple. Instead of every logistics company investing in its own charging infrastructure, operators could use strategically positioned charging facilities located closer to customers and delivery zones. This reduces detours to depots and makes mid-route charging more practical.
For city logistics, the concept resembles urban consolidation centers, parcel hubs, and shared microhubs: infrastructure that is too expensive or inefficient for individual operators but becomes viable when shared among multiple users.
What the study found
The simulation involved 100 customers served by three logistics operators using electric vehicles. The researchers optimized delivery routes while accounting for charging requirements. The most interesting finding is that shared charging hubs outperformed depot-only charging.
When charging was restricted to company depots, the system required the most routes and the longest total delivery time. Shared hubs located near customer clusters reduced total operational time by approximately 2.3% compared with depot charging. Public charging locations also performed better than depot-only charging, although slightly less effectively than strategically placed hubs.
The improvements may seem modest, but in urban freight, even a 2 to 3% reduction in vehicle hours can have significant implications for fleet size, driver productivity, and operating costs.
Interestingly, the study found that shared hubs reduced the number of routes required. This suggests that well-positioned charging infrastructure can partially offset the range limitations of electric vehicles.
What the research misses
The study makes a valuable contribution, but it also highlights how much work remains before shared charging hubs become mainstream.
First, the model focuses primarily on travel time, charging time, and route optimization. It does not include economic factors such as electricity prices, charging tariffs, land costs, infrastructure investment, or business models for hub operators.
Second, the analysis assumes charging stations are always available. In reality, queueing, booking systems, and peak demand could dramatically affect performance. This is particularly relevant in cities where grid congestion already limits charging capacity.
Third, the research assumes a fully electric fleet. Most cities are still in a transition phase with mixed fleets of diesel, hybrid, and electric vehicles. The operational benefits of shared charging hubs may therefore differ substantially from the model results.
Lessons for cities and logistics operators
Despite these limitations, the study reinforces an important message for policymakers and industry leaders: electrification is not only about vehicles. Infrastructure and operational design matter just as much.
For cities introducing zero-emission zones, shared charging hubs could become an important enabling measure. They may help smaller transport operators electrify sooner, reduce pressure on depot-based charging infrastructure, and improve vehicle utilization.
The findings also align with broader developments across Europe, where urban logistics increasingly relies on shared assets, including microhubs, parcel lockers, consolidation centers, and energy hubs.
The real question is no longer whether electric vehicles can perform urban deliveries. They already can. The next challenge is designing the charging ecosystem that allows fleets to operate efficiently at scale. Shared charging hubs may prove to be one of the most practical building blocks of that future.