Smart City Logistics

Smart City Logistics: Trends in Sustainable Last-Mile Deliveries

Last-mile deliveries to consumers and merchants in urban areas pose a variety of challenges for logistics companies.

Today’s consumers have very high expectations when it comes to product deliveries. “There are a lot of customers today that expect the delivery of the freight or the merchandise the same day or the next day, and even next day is almost too late,” said Stacey Hodoh, VP, Supply Chain – Distribution at Walmart.

Increased traffic congestion in urban areas makes it even harder to meet those expectations. Added to that, cities and their citizens intent on improving air quality and quality of life are demanding that logistics carriers do their part by finding more sustainable, less intrusive ways to make urban deliveries.

In addition to these challenges, firms are asked to make those quick, sustainable and less intrusive deliveries, all while reducing the cost of goods, improving working capital and relieving margin pressure.

Regional and national government agencies are starting to address cities’ congestion and pollution issues. In December 2015, the U.S. Department of Transportation launched the Smart City Challenge, asking mid-size cities across America to share their ideas for developing an integrated, smart transportation system that would use data, applications and technology to help people move goods more quickly, cheaply and efficiently.

The ideas they received ranged from sharing data to providing dynamic routing for truck traffic to apps for on-demand delivery trucks to city streets with dynamic markings that can change from loading zones to thoroughfares. (Download the complete report at http://bit.ly/SmartChallengeIdeas.)

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