Showing papers by "Laetitia Dablanc published in 2014"

The impact of e-commerce on final deliveries: alternative parcel delivery services in France and Germany

Abstract: In Europe, shopping habits have changed fast during the last decade and a high percentage of consumers now shop online. E-commerce for physical goods generates a significant demand for dedicated delivery services, and results in increasingly difficult last mile logistics. In particular home delivery services, which are usually the preferred option by the online consumers, contribute to the atomization of parcel flows thus causing particular problems within the urban areas. However, alternative delivery solutions are growing fast, especially in metropolitan areas The purpose of this article is to compare the alternatives to home delivery that have been developed by French and German parcel delivery operators which developed pick-up points in stores and automated lockers networks. The paper includes an analysis of the key drivers of the development of the two emblematic delivery services (pick-up points and lockers), with reference to the strategies of service providers and e-commerce firms as well as consumer preferences.

Final deliveries for online shopping: The deployment of pickup point networks in urban and suburban areas

Abstract: In France, e-commerce has experienced steady growth over the past decade. A striking aspect is that it is now widespread among different segments of the population, including suburban and rural households. This growth has generated significant demand for dedicated delivery services to end consumers. Pickup points (PP) represent a fast-growing alternative to home delivery, accounting for about 20% of parcel deliveries to households. The article focuses on the strategy of PP network operators. Our results are threefold.We have documented the recent development of alternative parcel delivery services to e-shoppers in Europe, and especially in France. We have described how the operators have decided to organize their PP network, identifying main variables and constraints. We have provided an analysis of the spatial distribution of PPs in France. The paper shows that at the French national level, PPs are nowawell established alternative to home deliveries and their presence covers urban, suburban and rural areas. While PP density in remote areas decreases faster than population density, rural e-consumers' accessibility to PP sites has reached a viable level. Furthermore, PP delivery services generate new types of B2B freight trips that are not yet included in current urban freight models.

Final Deliveries for Online Shopping: The Deployment of Pickup Point Networks in Urban and Suburban Areas

Abstract: Over the past ten years, e-commerce has generated a significant demand for dedicated delivery services to end consumers. Pick-up points and locker boxes represent a fast-growing solution, becoming an alternative to home delivery in 20% of the e-commerce deliveries in France. The purpose of this article is to identify how the operators in charge of delivering e-commerce products adapt to different urban, suburban and rural environments. In what ways do pickup point delivery networks differ in dense urban areas and more sparsely populated suburban and rural environments? The authors have focused their research on the department of Seine-et-Marne, in the East of the Paris region. After carrying out a literature review, the authors conducted interviews with operators. Seventeen in-depth interviews were conducted with the main transport operators involved in ecommerce in France. The authors finally conducted a spatial analysis looking at the locational patterns of pickup point.

Logistics Sprawl: Differential Warehousing Development Patterns in Los Angeles, California, and Seattle, Washington

Abstract: The warehousing industry experienced a period of rapid growth from 1998 to 2009. This paper compares the growth in geographic distribution of warehouses in the Los Angeles, California, and Seattle, Washington, metropolitan areas during that period. These two West Coast cities were chosen because of their geographic spread, proximity to major ports, as well as their size difference. The phenomenon of logistics sprawl, or the movement of logistics facilities away from urban centers, which has been demonstrated in past research for the Atlanta, Georgia, and Paris regions, is examined for the two metropolitan areas. To measure sprawl, the barycenter, or geographic center of warehousing establishments, is determined, as is the average distance of warehouses to that center. The average distance of warehouses to the warehousing barycenter was compared with the average distance from the barycenter for all establishments. Between 1998 and 2009, warehousing in Los Angeles sprawled considerably, with the average distance increasing from 25.91 to 31.96 mi, an increase of more than 6 mi. However in Seattle, the region locations remained relatively stable, showing a slight decrease in average distance from the geographic center. Possible explanations for that difference are discussed.

Logistics Sprawl and Urban Freight Planning Issues in a Major Gateway City

Abstract: This chapter examines the spatial patterns of freight and logistics activities and the planning and policy issues associated with them, using Los Angeles as a case study. The rapid increase in the number of freight facilities in Los Angeles in recent decades is discussed. An important aspect of the geography of the logistics industry in the Los Angeles metropolitan area is identified: “logistics sprawl”, which is the spatial deconcentration of logistics facilities and distribution centers. Local governments give explicit consideration to logistics activities, especially for the jobs and tax revenues they can generate in a time of economic difficulties. Two cities are examined in detail: one is a traditionally industrial city close to the downtown area, the other is a sprawling community of the “Inland Empire,” east of the L.A. metro area. Both cities tell the story of the seemingly inescapable rise in the importance of the warehousing/logistics industry in the economic life of working class areas, raising questions about the pros and cons of logistics activities for local communities.

Logistics spatial patterns in paris: the rise of the paris basin as a logistics megaregion

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to look at the spatial distribution of freight and logistics facilities in both the Paris region and the Paris megaregion (the Paris basin) between 2000 and 2012. We have documented a major rise in the number of warehousing and logistics facilities since the beginning of the 2000s in both areas. In terms of its spatial characteristics, this growth illustrates both centrifugal processes, from the urban core to the suburban and ex urban areas of the region, and centripetal processes, from the margins of the Paris basin to the edges of the Paris region. The logistics system is a global distribution process from international supply chains to urban supply chains. In this process, freight hubs serve as switches connecting these two scales of the logistics system. This role explains part of the locational patterns of logistics and warehousing facilities in Paris, both at the metropolitan scale of the Ile-de-France region and at the megaregional scale of the Paris basin. We conclude by providing areas of further research that could help establish and better specify the megaregional nature of the Paris basin as far as freight and logistics facilities are concerned.

Logistics Sprawl: Differential Warehousing Development Patterns in Los Angeles and Seattle

Abstract: The warehousing industry experienced a period of rapid growth from 1998 to 2009. This paper compares how the geographic distribution of warehouses changed in both the Los Angeles and Seattle Metropolitan Areas over that time period. These two west coast cities were chosen due to their geographic spread and proximity to major ports as well as their difference in size. The phenomenon of logistics sprawl, or the movement of logistics facilities away from urban centers, which has been demonstrated in past research for the Atlanta and Paris regions, is examined for these two areas. The weighted geometric center of warehousing establishments was calculated for both areas for both years, along with the change in the average distance of warehouses to that center, an indicator of sprawl. We find that between 1998 and 2009, warehousing in Los Angeles sprawled considerably, with the average distance increasing from 25.91 to 31.96 miles, an increase of over 6 miles. However in Seattle, the region remained relatively stable, showing a slight decrease in average distance from the geographic center. Possible explanations for this difference are discussed.

City Logistics: Towards a Global Typology

Abstract: Le transport des marchandises est associe etroitement au milieu urbain, une ville etant a la fois productrice, distributrice et consommatrice de biens. La Logistique Urbaine, en tant que strategie visant a repondre aux besoins des entreprises et des menages urbains de facon innovante et efficace (Dablanc, 2007) est un champ de recherche en emergence (Giuliano,et al., 2013), apparu pour repondre aux defis des changements profonds des systemes de production et de distribution (Rodrigue, 2004). Cet article propose un etat de l’art des tendances actuelles dans la logistique urbaine et souligne la diversite des situations du fret urbain et des strategies qui cherchent a y apporter une reponse, aux taux de succes variables. La logistique urbaine etant dependante des formes urbaines, de l’usage des sols et des activites economiques qui se deroulent sur les territoires urbains, nous proposons une typologie de classification des villes globales en fonction de leurs systemes de logistique urbaine. Nous mettons en evidence un besoin d’indicateurs de performance. Notre approche est fondee sur un etat de l’art scientifique et la recolte et l’analyse de donnees locales (demarches et plans d’amenagement et de transport de diverses villes dans le monde). Des modeles de logistique urbaine peuvent etre ainsi identifies. Retenons les cinq categories suivantes: 1) Une logistique urbaine au foncier efficace: les villes japonaises, qui ont su integrer les activites logistiques dans le tissu urbain dense. 2) La ville comme grand hub logistique: les villes grandes portes d’entree (gateways) pour les biens de consommation du pays (Amerique du Nord, Europe); 3) La ville comme plate-forme d’exportation globale et de grands terminaux logistiques nouveaux ou se concentre le developpement economique: les gateways d’Asie et d’Asie du sud-est; 4) Les systemes de logistique urbaine duaux: les grandes metropoles des pays emergents et en developpement ou coexistent un systeme logistique moderne et un systeme largement fonde sur des activites informelles. Et 5) Les villes de la logistique urbaine innovante: les centres-villes des grandes et moyennes villes europeennes qui voient se developper des vehicules, des organisations propres, durables et high-tech, sur des marches de niche qui restent limites mais recoivent une attention considerable.

Recent Innovation in Last Mile Deliveries

Abstract: In cities and metropolitan areas, last mile deliveries are a key factor contributing to local economic vitality, urban life quality and attractiveness of urban communities. However, the freight transport sector is responsible for negative impacts, mainly with regards to congestion, CO2 emissions and air and noise pollution. In order to improve efficiency and reduce adverse impacts, private companies as well as city planners and policy makers have designed initiatives to promote urban logistics innovations—organizational and technological—and introduce new policies. In this chapter, we provide an overview of innovative measures for last mile deliveries. We discuss innovation for delivery vehicles: new concepts, sizes and technologies (including electric and hybrid powered engines). We then detail recent innovations in parcel delivery services for e-commerce, focusing on pickup points and automated lockers. Finally, we present recent initiatives on urban food logistics and the deployment of Food Hubs as urban consolidation centers for perishable products.

La sous-traitance de la messagerie urbaine : Logiques économiques et rapports de dépendance

Abstract: Subcontracting is a common practice in road transport, especially in parcel transport operations. Parcel transport is defined as the collection and distribution of shipments of less than three tons. Deliveries and pick-up rounds in urban areas present some specificities (such as difficult traffic and parking situations) which contribute in the high the use of subcontracting within the parcel transport sector. Sub-contracting allows parcel carriers to minimize the costs of urban trips and to provide a flexible and cost-efficient service to shippers. We analyzed a 2012 “carriers” survey done in the Paris region as well as an earlier survey made in the Lyon region. We also interviewed several carriers. These interviews and surveys enlighten the relationships between parcel transport companies and their subcontractors and allow us to propose dependence indicators.

Les effets de la vente en ligne sur les inégalités territoriales d'accès au commerce. Vers un nivellement des disparités urbain-périurbain ?

Abstract: L’accessibilite geographique des populations aux biens est differenciee selon les espaces. Les populations des centres-villes peuvent acceder a pieds, a proximite de leur domicile a des magasins offrant un large choix de biens, alors que les populations periurbaines doivent parcourir plusieurs kilometres en voiture pour acceder au premier magasin de proximite. Depuis les annees 1990, le commerce a destination des particuliers (business-to-consumer) connait de fortes evolutions, avec le developpement d‘Internet et de la vente en ligne. Cette « electronisation » offre la possibilite d’une separation croissante des fonctions du commerce, notamment la vente en elle-meme et la logistique de distribution . Ainsi, la livraison a domicile et celle dans des relais-livraison se sont affirmees comme des modes de distribution alternatifs aux magasins, bouleversant les cadres de l’analyse de l’accessibilite des populations aux commerces, notamment dans les espaces periurbains. L’accessibilite est entendue ici comme l’ensemble des contraintes spatiales, temporelles et modales pesant sur les deplacements necessaires pour acceder a un bien. Les principales formes de distribution de la vente en ligne, les livraisons a domicile et en relais-livraison, proposent une redefinition de l’accessibilite a un large eventail de biens materiels, en offrant ces biens a domicile et/ou dans des commerces de proximite plutot que, pour certains biens, dans un magasin du centre-ville. Les disparites d’accessibilites aux commerces, parfois fortes selon le type de bien recherche, marquees par un gradient urbain-periurbain et par une heterogeneite des territoires periurbains, devraient s’en trouver significativement nivelees par une multiplication attendue des points de distribution, notamment dans des territoires qui n’en disposaient pas. Cependant cela necessite, d’une part, que les habitants des territoires concernes adoptent largement le commerce electronique et tirent parti des options de livraison. D’autre part, le developpement de la vente en ligne entraine une transformation de l’offre commerciale existante par la concurrence qu’elle opere. Certaines localisations commerciales existantes s’en trouvent fragilisees ou remises en cause, tout autant que l’accessibilite et les pratiques d’achat des populations residant dans ces territoires. Les trois parties du rapport fournissent des reponses et des eclairages differencies sur ces interrogations, plus precisement sur celle formulee en titre. La premiere partie sera focalisee sur l'acces aux produits alimentaires et de consommation courante via l'analyse des zones de dessertes des cybermarches. La seconde partie s'interessera a un acteur emergent du e-commerce: les points relais. Enfin la derniere partie essaiera de saisir plus finement les usages et pratiques des menages en termes de ventes en ligne.

Logistics Sprawl: Differential Warehousing Development Patterns in Los Angeles and Seattle

Abstract: The warehousing industry experienced a period of rapid growth from 1998 to 2009. This paper compares how the geographic distribution of warehouses changed in both the Los Angeles and Seattle Metropolitan Areas over that time period. These two west coast cities were chosen due to their geographic spread and proximity to major ports as well as their difference in size. The phenomenon of logistics sprawl, or the movement of logistics facilities away from urban centers, which has been demonstrated in past research for the Atlanta and Paris regions, is examined for these two areas. The weighted geometric center of warehousing establishments was calculated for both areas for both years, along with the change in the average distance of warehouses to that center, an indicator of sprawl. We find that between 1998 and 2009, warehousing in Los Angeles sprawled considerably, with the average distance increasing from 25.91 to 31.96 miles, an increase of over 6 miles. However in Seattle, the region remained relatively stable, showing a slight decrease in average distance from the geographic center. Possible explanations for this difference are discussed.

Urban Freight Distribution: a Global Typology. In: The Geography of Urban Transportation

Abstract: This chapter provides a review of the current trends in city logistics and underlines the diversity in which urban freight distribution takes place. Urban freight distribution is prone to a wide array of externalities, namely congestion, pollution and community disruptions, which city logistics tries to mitigate. Based upon the main challenges that have been identified, the paper looks at the city logistics strategies and policies that have been implemented with various degrees of success. Since city logistics is dependent on the specific urban land use form, pattern and function in which it takes place, the paper suggests a typology to classify global cities by their city logistics systems and underlines the need for performance metrics.

The geography of urban freight. In : The geography of urban transportation

Abstract: This paper provides a review of the current trends in city logistics and underlines the diversity in which urban freight distribution takes place. Urban freight distribution is prone to a wide array of externalities, namely congestion, pollution and community disruptions, which city logistics tries to mitigate. Based upon the main challenges that have been identified, the paper looks at the city logistics strategies and policies that have been implemented with various degrees of success. Since city logistics is dependent on the specific urban land use form, pattern and function in which it takes place, the paper suggests a typology to classify global cities by their city logistics systems and underlines the need for performance metrics.