Workforce Development Resources

Just-in-time deliveries and lower inventories have led to more frequent deliveries of goods and services, markedly increasing urban congestion. The Goods Movement in the New York Metropolitan Area study's goal was to develop a research methodology for capturing urban freight mobility data and to collect cost and time data on freight moving into New York City's central business district (CBD). The methodology developed and its implementation are discussed. Problems with access and collecting data from industry executives are also addressed. In industry-sector focus groups, senior logistics executives discussed urban freight mobility issues, especially barriers to goods movement into the CBD. Barriers consistently identified in order of greatest frequency of mention from 13 focus groups were congestion, inadequate docking space, inadequate curb space for commercial vehicles, security, and excessive ticketing of high-profile companies. The Freight Mobility Interview form asked logistics/transportation/distribution managers to provide company-specific information about the following categories: transportation services and distribution channels used and related cost, time, and barriers to freight mobility. Analysis of the interview data revealed that major barriers to freight mobility identified by both shippers and carriers were consistent with those cited by focus group participants. The combined and qualitative and quantitative data collected identified the processes industry uses to manage urban congestion.

This paper proposes a review of a few current models developed about urban goods movement thanks to a work carried out in the frame of the BESTUFS EU Coordination Action and a set of relevant papers concerning this field. In spite of a recent concern about this question, the operational and really implemented models are relatively scarce in comparison with the urban passenger and car traffic models or with the interurban freight traffic models. This paper focuses on urban goods movement modeling in Western Europe and Northern America and will try to enlighten the main features, according to each specific historical, institutional, demographic and geographic context, as well as the availability of data and the choices of modeling methods and their implementation. In the end, three models are selected for more detailed description and comparison: TLUMIP from USA, VISEVA-W and FRETURB from European Union.

The American way of life relies on the U.S. transportation system to move goods and services effectively and efficiently. Much of this movement occurs in urban areas, so it is natural that we wonder about what form our urban freight systems will take in the next millennium. This article is divided into five sections. It begins with a historical snapshot of urban transportation planning and national transportation policy in relation to the movement of urban freight. It then presents the influences on freight demand. Next, it examines the potential effects of research and technology on urban freight movement, particularly how the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act is changing urban freight transportation planning and policy development. It then addresses the topic of educating future decision makers, planners, and engineers. Finally, it considers the direction that urban freight movement might take in the next millennium.

The American way of life relies on the U.S. transportation system to move goods and services effectively and efficiently. Much of this movement occurs in urban areas, so it is natural that we wonder about what form our urban freight systems will take in the next millennium. This article is divided into five sections. It begins with a historical snapshot of urban transportation planning and national transportation policy in relation to the movement of urban freight. It then presents the influences on freight demand. Next, it examines the potential effects of research and technology on urban freight movement, particularly how the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act is changing urban freight transportation planning and policy development. It then addresses the topic of educating future decision makers, planners, and engineers. Finally, it considers the direction that urban freight movement might take in the next millennium.

Urban areas are vital centers of economic activity and innovation generating large economies of density and proximity. Yet, procuring and distributing goods in an urban context is fraught with difficulties because of infrastructure congestion, external costs, conflicting objectives among stakeholders, and asymmetric information. In order to improve the performance of the urban goods transport system many policies have been proposed, including goods vehicle time windows, vehicle-type restrictions, loadingunloading policies, fiscal policies, the promotion urban transshipment and consolidation centers. Unfortunately, not much is known concerning how these policies affect the existing distribution practices. It is quite likely that the impact is differentiated by type of product and distribution channel. The aim of this paper is to explore this issue. Drawing on the existing literature and on the empirical evidence from some Italian cities, the paper identifies and discusses the relationship between each of the above-mentioned policies and the distribution channels of some goods (fresh food sold in retail stores, food distributed by Hotels, Restaurants and Catering (Ho.Re.Ca.), pharmaceutical products and clothing & footwear) which are commonly distributed in Italian urban centers. It is found that the distribution of pharmaceutical products is unaffected by these policies, whereas the distribution of fresh food is negatively affected especially by access time regulation and loadingunloading policies. The Ho.Re.Ca. and the clothing & footwear channels are likely to be impacted the most by fiscal policies and by the promotion of urban transshipment and consolidation centers.

This report presents a general overview of public policy and planning in the field of urban freight transport. Urban freight transport is the subject of local, regional and national policies in different policy fields, such as transportation planning, environmental planning and economic planning. The most interesting developments in policies related to urban freight transport in the Netherlands, France, Germany and Japan are described. These countries show differences in underlying problems and approaches, but also present similarities. Their policies are mainly based on stimulating consolidation by voluntary co-operation between transport companies in combination with the establishment of freight centers, and measures in the field of licensing and regulation. None of these countries pretend to have found the optimal solution to the urban freight transport problems, so that further development of urban freight transport policy is still needed. Further regulation of urban freight transport, as well as technological innovation will considerably influence policy-making in the field of urban freight transport in the future.

Intermodal road-rail transport (IRRT) has a significant urban dimension that affects the environmental benefits and the modal shift potential of rail freight. A sustainable modal shift, i.e., growth in rail freight without negative consequences for the sustainability of urban areas, can only be achieved by appropriate actions that demonstrate an understanding of the urban context within which IRRT takes place. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the interactions between urban freight transport and IRRT and their implications for urban sustainability and modal shift strategies.

This research combines empirical case studies to develop a framework for sustainable urban freight transport, and conceptual and analytical research to assess the potential of different measures to enhance the sustainability of IRRT, including: (I) the regulatory framework for pre- and post haulage vehicles to improve cost efficiency; (ii) fast and efficient transshipments to increase the accessibility of rail freight; and (iii) the urban spatial structure to reduce the local impacts of IRRT.

The application of the framework on IRRT identifies the potential of integrating urban freight and modal shift strategies. Local authorities therefore have an important role to play if a sustainable modal shift is to be achieved. However, they often do not have sufficient logistics competence to integrate freight transport and urban sustainability strategies. The framework can guide urban planners on how to overcome the existing shortcomings in urban transport planning. It also illustrates the benefits of a rail-adapted urban planning for local sustainability, which can encourage cities to include rail freight in their sustainable development strategies. From a theoretical perspective, the identified interactions and potentials of an integrated approach provide the context for studies going beyond the usual scope of either urban freight or IRRT focusing on the interaction between these two areas. This thesis therefore contributes to the integration of these streams of research.

Renault Trucks puts forward ideas and solutions for an effective, energy efficient and environmental friendly urban freight mobility.