This is a literature review of previous research and trials to improve understanding of the elements that make for a successful and viable Compulsory Urban Consolidation Centre (CUCC) and identify barriers and risks. It directly feeds into subsequent objectives/tasks, which are:
These tasks are part of a project that is solely to research and identify the necessary criteria for establishing a viable compulsory consolidation centre. As the future trial itself will evidence the impacts, risks, and benefits of a CUCC, this project must establish the requirements for conducting a successful trial, such as the legislative changes needed to allow it to operate successfully, the resources required to set up and run the operation and how site selection for a future trial should be conducted.
Note that some evaluation has been made as to the varying levels of compulsion and the potential strengths, weaknesses, barriers, and risks of these different types of mandatory intervention. This is to be able to explore the elements of previous trials that were most successful, produced the greatest impact or were essential to the functioning of consolidation centres/schemes.
The increased demand for the distribution of goods and services in cities ('urban freight logistics') and solutions to the dis-benefits generated ('city logistics') are forecast to continue to grow through the 21st century, due to increasing urbanisation, income growth, and fragmentation of supply chains. Urbanisation has risen globally, with Europe the most urbanised continent, and the greatest rates of growth predicted for 2050 in Asia and Africa [1].
A fragmentation of logistics at the last mile delivery has been evident, both globally and locally, as smaller vehicles delivered smaller consignments of lower value, higher density goods [2]. The causes of this fragmentation are yet to be fully understood but are known to include rising home deliveries; online shopping; regulations on time; vehicle size or type; reduction of storage; just-in-time principles; and replacement of stocks with last minute deliveries [3].
The inefficient use of resources has impacted economic viability, since the cost of last-mile deliveries could contribute anywhere between 13% and 75% of the total logistics costs, with research suggesting a norm of 40-50% for parcel deliveries [4,5]. Costs may be generated by the low load utilisation of urban freight vehicles, partially due to market demand, restrictive regulation, and lack of cooperation in a free market [6,7], making higher vehicle utilisation a key economic goal.
The social effects of urban distribution have been potentially lower than expected: delivery vehicles made up between 10% and 18% [8,9] of urban road traffic and in general tended to avoid peak times. There are few noticeable social equity issues, although some recent research into US metropolitan areas had suggested traffic congestion growth negatively affected growth in income and employment [10]. Freight traffic has been highly unpopular with the public in the UK, who considered it the lowest priority in terms of road use [11] and saw a growing issue of safety conflict between cyclists and trucks [12].
In 2018, 34% of Nitrogen Oxides (NOX) emissions and 13% of Particulate Matter (PM2.5) emissions came from transport, and Transport produced 27% of the UK's total emissions in 2019. Of this, the majority (91%) came from road transport vehicles (111 MtCO2e). The biggest contributors to this were cars and taxis, which
Page 3