D1.2: Impacts of existing delivery models and options

Central to CodeZERO are four pilots in four different European cities in Italy, Netherlands, Belgium, and Norway to test a set of sustainable solutions, identified within the project, with the aim of determining their feasibility, fine-tuning their design, and assessing their impacts from the perspective of all relevant stakeholders.

This CodeZERO report ‘Impacts of existing delivery options and models’ consists of:

• A taxonomy of different delivery options and models for e-commerce deliveries and returns that can be used as a framework to configure the delivery model depending on attributes related to different (e-commerce) products, check-out options, distribution structure, and transport services.

• A definition of the current delivery options and models of the CodeZERO retailer partners in the four pilot-cities. The taxonomy was used to collaboratively define the current delivery models during interviews with the parties from the four cities.

• An impact assessment of the delivery options and models of the four retailers.

There are significant differences in the delivery models that can primarily be traced back to the differences in type of products, customer requirements, transportation capabilities, and the physical and policy context (i.e., dense areas, emission requirements). There is also a distinction between transport on own account that consolidates the deliveries within the organization, and outsourced deliveries where deliveries of different shippers are consolidated. Vehicle types also vary from small trucks for two-person deliveries to cargo bikes for parcel deliveries. In most cases, light commercial vehicles, sometimes electric, are deployed. Delivery addresses are mostly customers’ homes, but certain models further provide options for pick-up points. Depending on the type of products (i.e., size) and delivery options offered, some retailers have multiple delivery models.

The impact assessment shows the impact of deliveries with regard to distance driven (in total, per trip and between stops), drop density (number of items per delivery), CO2 emissions, duration, and dwell time per stop. The latter is longest in the case of e-groceries and furniture, especially compared to parcels. Two retailers outsource deliveries to a 3PL (third-party logistics provider), which makes it difficult to isolate the impact of specific deliveries by the retailers. In this case, a description of the potential impact has been added. The taxonomy in this deliverable serves as input for the co-design workshops in WP4 and the impact assessment of the pilots.