Part II
Strategies and decision making
6. Themes and challenges in making urban freight distribution sustainable
Maisam Abassi and Mats Johnsson
Introduction to city logistics
Geographically speaking, the Øresund region is located in a very central position, particularly if we consider the expanding markets of Eastern Europe. The region is a natural gateway to the entire Baltic region, while at the same time it offers excellent transport links to the rest of Europe and to the world. The rich variety of transport and communications alternatives in the region satisfies both the requirements of cost-efficient shipping and swift easily accessible passenger travel.
The demand for efficient goods transports rises as consequence of a multitude of factors.
One such factor is that the Just-In-Time principle nowadays can be implemented as a global strategy due to improved intercontinental communications. On top of this, the net value of transported goods is steadily rising, which means that the costs for capitalisation also have an upward tendency. As an example, it can be mentioned that the discounted present value of transported goods between Sweden and the rest of the EU has risen by more than 100 per cnet since the early 1970s.
During the past century, the planet’s urban population grew ten-fold. Now more than half of the world's population is living in urban areas. As a result of this rapid expansion, urban areas continue to grow at a faster rate than any other land-use type. In Europe, approximately 80 per cent of the citizens live in urban environments (McKinnon et al., 2010).
Due to urbanisation: new infrastructures as well as buildings are built, jobs are created, diverse services are offered, and industrialisation is advanced. Growth in urban areas has been a generator of economic growth as well. In Europe, 85 per cent of the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) is generated in cities (EU, 2007).
Historically, the production and consumption of freight has dominantly taken place in cities, but with the industrial revolution and subsequently with globalisation this share has increased. Since the distances involved in economic activities have increased, the function of distribution has taken a new significance, particularly with the setting of large terminal facilities such as ports, airports, rail yards, and distribution centres. With containerisation as a tool supporting international trade, intermodal terminals have become a notable element of the urban landscape and handling movements that are originating from, bound to, or simply passing through a metropolitan area. The global urban and economic system has also become functionally specialised, permitting a global division of production and its associated freight volumes. Socioeconomic factors, such as rising income and consumerism should also not be neglected. All this incites a greater
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intensity and frequency of urban freight distribution and correspondingly improved forms, organisation, and management.
Developments in urban areas are not tied with just good news. Degradation of natural resources of the Earth like deforestation, shortage of land, and unequal distribution of power between rural and urban areas are just some cons to mention. Urbanisation also increases the mobility of humans as well as freights. Although economically and socially feasible, mobility in urban areas may lead to GHG emissions, local air pollution, energy/fuel consumptions, congestion, accidents, noise, and visual intrusion. It has also negative effects on residents’ health when they inhale GHGs and/or are injured by accidents and noise.
In the European Union (EU), transportation still depends on oil and oil products for 96 per cent of its energy needs (EU, 2011). According to Eurostat (cited in Jönson and Tengström, 2005, p.235), transport’s CO2 emissions are increasing and are the fastest-growing sector in Europe. In the same continent, urban transport is responsible for about a quarter of CO2 emissions from transport, and 69 per cent of road accidents occur in cities (EU, 2011).
In this regard, the EU (2011, p.3) has set goals to limit climate change below 2oC by drastically reduce GHG emissions – from all sectors of the economy – by 80-90 per cent below 1990 levels until 2050. It is also estimated that a reduction of at least 60 per cent of GHGs by 2050 with respect to 1990 is required from the transport sector.
However, to achieve the EU’s goals sounds tremendously challenging. It is clear that by current business as usual approaches, the goals cannot be reached (EU, 2011, p.4-5);
instead new strategies with innovative solutions are required. Breaking the current approaches, ways of thinking, and patterns of behaviour is fairly complex, costly, and time-consuming. Although innovation can be radical, adaptation of new solutions as well as change of behaviour are just incremental.
Complexity of freight- than passenger transport (Wigan and Southworth, 2004; Himanen et al., 2004; Lieb and Lieb, 2010) and, in specific, urban freight transport and distribution (McKinnon et al., 2010, p.294; Jönson and Tengström, 2005; Waddell et al., 2007) make their sustainable development challenging as well. Evidence of such complexity can be witnessed in the large number of actors who influence freight distribution in urban/city areas such as Logistics Service Providers (LSPs), carriers, shippers/receivers (like retail stores, shops, restaurants, private consignees, and industries (construction industry, hotels, etc.)), residents, authorities, and researchers.
Another dimension of such complexity is the large number of activities which are/should be done in urban freight distribution operations. Consolidation, transhipment, coordination, sorting, kitting, sequencing, commercialisation, packaging, storage, handling, and transportation of freight as well as reverse logistical activities (recycling, repacking, refurbishing, waste handling, etc.) are just few examples to mention.
In addition, freight- than passenger movements in urban areas is much more heterogeneous and dynamic. Freights are distributed through many (distribution) channels. Furthermore, the channels (including routes and paths) may change rapidly specifically in post- and home-delivery services.
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There are also a number of dilemmas in understanding simultaneous ecological-, social-, and economical- effects of new industrial trends on urban freight distribution. For instance, E-business/commerce, Just-In-Time (JIT) with shorter lead-times, regional business growth, may have antagonistic effects on triple bottom line of sustainability.
McKinnon et al. (2010, p.286) truly claim that “the problems experienced by those performing freight transport and logistics operations in urban areas are far less well understood.”
Until relatively recently, little attention has been paid to urban freight by researchers and policy makers (Dablanc, 2007; McKinnon et al., 2010; Álvarez and de la Calle, 2011).
The scenario becomes even worse when it comes to awareness of- and attention to- sustainable urban freight distribution. However, this is the driving force – and maybe motivation – for us (the authors) in order to take a relatively holistic view to current initiatives as well as challenges in making urban freight distribution sustainable. Such a holistic view is essential in order to: understand how different actors of the chain look upon sustainable urban freight distribution, avoid sub-optimal policies / governing rules, and suggest close-to-reality solutions for tackling the challenges.
This chapter aims to explore, classify, and synthesize/analyse pattern of themes as well as challenges in making urban freight distribution environmentally sustainable. A concluding discussion for tackling the challenges is included as well.