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Delivery to homes or collection points? A sustainability analysis for urban, urbanised and rural areas in Belgium

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  • Mommens, Koen
  • Buldeo Rai, Heleen
  • van Lier, Tom
  • Macharis, Cathy

Abstract

E-commerce is a rapidly growing and evolving sector. The sector is however struggling with organising its last mile deliveries in order to meet the sustainability requirements, both economically and environmentally. Multiple studies have compared deliveries to collection points with deliveries to residential home addresses in sustainability terms. The variety in results indicates that these studies are bound to local parameters (such as regulations, drop densities, collection point networks). Consequently, their results cannot be generalised or transferred to other contexts. In this research, we compare deliveries to stores serving as collection points and homes for online ordered non-food products in Belgium. The solutions are simulated with agent-based transport model TRABAM. The results are evaluated based on their generated external costs and differentiated according to three area types: urban, urbanised and rural areas. Considering the case-specific density of the collection points, the results indicate that home deliveries are preferred in rural and urbanised areas when considering the sustainability impact solely. In urban areas, collection point deliveries are more sustainable.

Suggested Citation

  • Mommens, Koen & Buldeo Rai, Heleen & van Lier, Tom & Macharis, Cathy, 2021. "Delivery to homes or collection points? A sustainability analysis for urban, urbanised and rural areas in Belgium," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jotrge:v:94:y:2021:i:c:s0966692321001484
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2021.103095
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Danni Zhang & Regina Frei & Gary Wills & Enrico Gerding & Steffen Bayer & Prince Kwame Senyo, 2023. "Strategies and practices to reduce the ecological impact of product returns: An environmental sustainability framework for multichannel retail," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(7), pages 4636-4661, November.
    3. Kahalimoghadam, Masoud & Thompson, Russell G. & Rajabifard, Abbas, 2024. "Determining the number and location of micro-consolidation centres as a solution to growing e-commerce demand," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    4. Jose Alejandro Cano & Abraham Londoño-Pineda & Carolina Rodas, 2022. "Sustainable Logistics for E-Commerce: A Literature Review and Bibliometric Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-24, September.
    5. Jose Alejandro Cano & Abraham Londoño-Pineda & Maria Fanny Castro & Hugo Bécquer Paz & Carolina Rodas & Tatiana Arias, 2022. "A Bibliometric Analysis and Systematic Review on E-Marketplaces, Open Innovation, and Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-42, May.
    6. Garola, Giovanni & Seghezzi, Arianna & Siragusa, Chiara & Mangiaracina, Riccardo, 2022. "Sustainability in urban logistics: A literature review," Chapters from the Proceedings of the Hamburg International Conference of Logistics (HICL), in: Kersten, Wolfgang & Jahn, Carlos & Blecker, Thorsten & Ringle, Christian M. (ed.), Changing Tides: The New Role of Resilience and Sustainability in Logistics and Supply Chain Management – Innovative Approaches for the Shift to a New , volume 33, pages 709-730, Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), Institute of Business Logistics and General Management.
    7. Sören Lauenstein & Christoph Schank, 2022. "Design of a Sustainable Last Mile in Urban Logistics—A Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-14, May.

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