by Walther Ploos van Amstel
Cities around the world are taking bold steps to reduce car traffic and reclaim public space. In Bergen, Norway, a new zoning proposal aims to reduce traffic in the historic city center, restricting access primarily to public transportation and emergency services. While this is a commendable move toward a more livable and pedestrian-friendly urban environment, …
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 …
Artificial intelligence will transform the logistics of consumer deliveries. AI promises to transform last-mile deliveries with some new technologies and improvements to old ones. The Wall Street Journal reports about it. Promising innovations are: Putting smarter drones in the air Sending robots to your door Predicting parking spaces Making the drivers safer Optimizing routes in …
In 2022 three Delphi studies (based on scenarios) were published about the future of last-mile innovations in urban areas: Peppel, M., Ringbeck, J., & Spinler, S. (2022). How will last-mile delivery be shaped in 2040? A Delphi-based scenario study. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 177, 121493. The researchers developed projections of future consumer behavior, delivery technologies, delivery services, …
Globalization, urbanization, and the recent COVID-19 pandemic have raised the demand for logistic activities. This change is affecting the entire supply chain, especially the last-mile step. This step is considered the most expensive and ineffective part of the supply chain and a source of negative economic, environmental, and social externalities. A publication by Portuguese researchers …
The market for vehicle routing and scheduling and last-mile applications continues to grow as organizations are seeking ways to optimize fleet operations. Gartner presents a market guide. Last-mile delivery solutions are an evolution of VRS, grown due to the huge increase in e-commerce and last-mile operations. Whereas traditional routing solutions focused primarily on fleets and movements …