Check out the episode:

You can find the shownotes through this link.

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Are you interested in last-mile urban logistics optimisation?

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Our debate today works with the article titled Fulfilment of last-mile urban logistics for sustainable and inclusive smart cities: A case study conducted in Portugal from 2022, by Diogo Correia, Cristiano Vagos, João Lourenço Marques and Leonor Teixeira, published in the International Journal of Logistics Research and Application.

This is a great preparation to our next interview with Laetitia Dablanc in episode 474 talking about how current urban experts lack crucial skills to update urban areas.

Since we are investigating the future of cities, I thought it would be interesting to see the readiness of policymakers to manage last-mile urban logistics for better urban futures. This article highlights that stakeholder collaboration and predictive analytics are essential for transforming urban delivery into a more efficient, community-focused operation.

Find the article through this link.

Abstract: While industry tends towards mass personalisation and instant deliveries, the last mile of urban logistics is being challenged to decrease the number of vehicles in circulation and the distances they travel in city centres. The COVID-19 pandemic helped expose the inefficiency of cities in fulfilling citizens’ real-time needs. Moreover, the first aim of this paper is to understand the barriers which policymakers face in providing a personalised response to citizens’ needs and the second to ascertain how they can proactively serve their communities. In line with these concerns, empirical evidence was collected through a questionnaire to Portuguese policymakers, and the results were discussed in a focus group with experts. The results suggest a lack of tools to enable real-time visualisation and study of scenarios for implementing and organising means of delivery and storage. Moreover, although policymakers feel confident in their capacity to manage the last mile, they would struggle to operate autonomously. Therefore, this paper conceptualises an initial algorithm based on the dynamic collaboration of stakeholders and sharing of resources to guarantee fulfilment of citizens’ necessities. Furthermore, future discussions shall emerge about the relationships and technical standards between stakeholders to provide the necessary logistical means for city management and operations.

Connected episodes you might be interested in:

• No.451R – Defining the interface between city logistics and urban design: a systematic literature review
• No.452 – Interview with Ron van Duin about urban freight
• No.465R – The state of sustainable urban last-mile freight planning in the United States
• No.466 – Interview with Anne Goodchild about last mile delivery

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