Paper

How Cargo Cycle Drivers Use the Urban Transport Infrastructure

URL: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tra.2022.103562

Publication: Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice

Volume: 167

Publication Date: 2023

Summary:

Electric cargo cycles are often considered a viable alternative mode for delivering goods in an urban area. However, cities in the U.S. are struggling to regulate cargo cycles, with most authorities applying the same rules used for motorized vehicles or traditional bikes. One reason is the lack of understanding of the relationships between existing regulations, transport infrastructure, and cargo cycle parking and driving behaviors.

In this study, we analyzed a cargo cycle pilot test in Seattle and collected detailed data on the types of infrastructure used for driving and parking. GPS data were augmented by installing a video camera on the cargo cycle and recording the types of infrastructure used (distinguishing between the travel lane, bicycle lane, and sidewalk), the time spent on each type, and the activity performed.

The analysis created a first-of-its-kind, detailed profile of the parking and driving behaviors of a cargo cycle driver. We observed a strong preference for parking (80 percent of the time) and driving (37 percent of the time) on the sidewalk. We also observed that cargo cycle parking was generally short (about 4 min), and the driver parked very close to the delivery address (30 m on average) and made only one delivery. Using a random utility model, we identified the infrastructure design parameters that would incentivize drivers to not use the sidewalk and to drive more on travel and bicycle lanes.

The results from this study can be used to better plan for a future in which cargo cycles are used to make deliveries in urban areas.

Authors: Dr. Giacomo Dalla ChiaraGriffin DonnellyŞeyma GüneşDr. Anne Goodchild

Recommended Citation:
Dalla Chiara, G., Donnelly, G., Gunes, S., & Goodchild, A. (2023). How Cargo Cycle Drivers Use the Urban Transport Infrastructure. Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 167, 103562. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tra.2022.103562

Paper

Identifying the Challenges to Sustainable Urban Last-Mile Deliveries: Perspectives from Public and Private Stakeholders

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URL: https://doi.org/10.3390/su14084701

Publication: Sustainability

Volume: 14, 4701

Publication Date: 2022

Summary:

While freight transportation is a necessary activity to sustain cities’ social and economic life—enabling the movement and deployment of goods and services in urbanized areas—it also accounts for a significant portion of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The urban freight ecosystem is a complex network of agents, both public and private. Reducing CO2 emissions from urban freight requires the collaboration and coordination between those agents, but the motivations behind their goals, strategies for achieving those goals, and the challenges faced by each agent may differ. In this paper, we document the strategies aimed at reducing CO2 emissions considered by cities and private companies with the goal of understanding the challenges to progress faced by each. To accomplish this, we interviewed officials from purposefully sampled city departments in North America and private companies involved in city logistics. We found that cities face challenges related to a lack of strong leadership, resources, and policy tools. Companies must consider technological challenges, costs, and their workforce before reducing emissions. Cities and companies are challenged by the disaggregated nature of the urban freight “system”—a system that is not organized at the municipal scale and that is driven by performance and customer expectations.

Authors: Thomas MaxnerDr. Giacomo Dalla ChiaraDr. Anne Goodchild

Recommended Citation:
Maxner, T.; Dalla Chiara, G.; Goodchild, A. Identifying the Challenges to Sustainable Urban Last-Mile Deliveries: Perspectives from Public and Private Stakeholders. Sustainability 2022, 14, 4701. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14084701.

Paper

The Impact of Commercial Parking Utilization on Cyclist Behavior in Urban Environments

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URL: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trf.2020.07.014

Publication: Transportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and Behaviour

Volume: 74

Pages: 67-80

Publication Date: 2020

Summary:

With growing freight operations within the United States, there continues to be a push for urban streets to accommodate trucks during loading and unloading operations. Currently, many urban locations do not provide loading and unloading zones, which results in trucks parking in places that can obstruct roadway infrastructure designated to vulnerable road users (e.g., pedestrians and cyclists). In an effort to understand the implications of these truck operations, a bicycle simulation experiment was designed to evaluate the impact of commercial vehicle loading and unloading activities on safe and efficient bicycle operations in a shared urban roadway environment. A counter-balanced, factorial design was chosen to explore three independent variables: commercial vehicle loading zone (CVLZ) sizes with three levels (no CVLZ, Min CVLZ, and Max CVLZ), courier position with also three levels (No courier, behind the truck, beside the truck), and loading accessories (Acc) with two levels (no Acc, and with Acc). Cyclist’s velocity and lateral position were used as performance measures. Data were obtained from 48 participants (24 women) resulting in 864 observations in 18 experimental scenarios. Linear Mixed-Effects Models (LMM) were developed to examine the effect of each independent variable level on bicyclist performance.

Results from LMM model suggest that loading zone size had the greatest effect on cyclist’s divergence. Additionally, when the courier was walking beside the truck, cyclist’s velocity significantly dropped to almost one m/sec in compared when the courier located behind the truck. The presence of accessories had the lowest influence on both velocity and lateral positions of cyclists. In the no CVLZ scenarios, the delivery vehicle was parked at the bike lane, therefore; cyclists had to choose between using the travel lane or the sidewalk. About one-third of participants decided to use the sidewalk. These findings could support better roadway and CVLZ design guidelines, which will allow our urban street system to operate more efficiently, safely, and reliably for all users.

Authors: Dr. Anne GoodchildManali ShethDr. Ed McCormack, Hisham Jashami, Douglas Cobb, David S. Hurtwitz

Paper

Using the Truck Appointment System to Improve Yard Efficiency in Container Terminals

URL: https://doi.org/10.1057/mel.2012.23

Publication: Maritime Economics & Logistics

Volume: 15

Pages: 101-119

Publication Date: 2013

Summary:

This article considers the effectiveness of a truck appointment system in improving yard efficiency in a container terminal. This research uses the truck appointment information obtained from an appointment system to improve import container retrieval operation and reduce container rehandles by adopting an advanced container location assignment algorithm. By reducing container rehandles, the terminal could improve yard crane productivity and reduce truck transaction time. A hybrid approach of simulation and queuing theory was developed to model the container retrieval operation and estimate the crane productivity and truck turn-time. Various configurations of the truck appointment system are modeled to investigate how those factors affect the effectiveness of the truck information. The research results illustrate a clear benefit for terminals utilizing a truck appointment system to manage their yard operation. Reducing the duration of the appointment time window or increasing the appointment lead time could further enhance system performance. Furthermore, the truck information is still effective in improving system efficiency, even if a good portion of trucks miss their appointments.

Authors: Dr. Anne Goodchild, Wenjuan Zhao

Recommended Citation:
Zhao, W., & Goodchild, A. V. (2013). Using the Truck Appointment System to Improve Yard Efficiency in Container Terminals. Maritime Economics & Logistics, 15(1), 101-119.

Paper

Evaluating The Efficacy Of Shared-Use Vehicles For Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions: A U.S. Case Study Of Grocery Delivery

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URL: http://journals.oregondigital.org/trforum/article/view/2926

Publication: Transportation Research Forum

Volume: 51 (2)

Pages: 111-126

Publication Date: 2012

Summary:

This paper compares the CO2 emissions from the use of personal vehicles to shared-use vehicles for grocery shopping in Seattle, Washington. The research builds on existing literature by considering the importance of modeling the logistical details of routing and scheduling, and by comparing the results of an American case study to existing European case studies. We find the US and European case studies to provide consistent results, that low customer density provides greater opportunities for emissions reductions, and that logistical efficiencies can account for approximately 50% of CO2 reductions.

Authors: Dr. Anne Goodchild, Erica Wygonik

Recommended Citation:
Wygonik, Erica, and Anne Goodchild. "Evaluating the efficacy of shared-use vehicles for reducing greenhouse gas emissions: a US case study of grocery delivery." In Journal of the Transportation Research Forum, vol. 51, no. 2. 2012.

Paper

Assessing the Safety Effects of Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems: A Bowtie Analysis Approach

URL: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aap.2016.11.014

Publication: Accident Analysis and Prevention

Volume: 99 (A)

Pages: 125-141

Publication Date: 2017

Summary:

The safety effects of cooperative intelligent transport systems (C-ITS) are mostly unknown and associated with uncertainties, because these systems represent emerging technology. This study proposes a bowtie analysis as a conceptual framework for evaluating the safety effect of cooperative intelligent transport systems. These seek to prevent road traffic accidents or mitigate their consequences. Under the assumption of the potential occurrence of a particular single-vehicle accident, three case studies demonstrate the application of the bowtie analysis approach in road traffic safety. The approach utilizes exemplary expert estimates and knowledge from literature on the probability of the occurrence of accident risk factors and of the success of safety measures. Fuzzy set theory is applied to handle uncertainty in expert knowledge. Based on this approach, a useful tool is developed to estimate the effects of safety-related cooperative intelligent transport systems in terms of the expected change in accident occurrence and consequence probability.

Authors: Dr. Ed McCormack, Ute Christine Ehlers, Eirin Olaussen Ryeng, Faisal Khan, Sören Ehlers

Recommended Citation:
Ehlers, Ute Christine, Eirin Olaussen Ryeng, Edward McCormack, Faisal Khan, and Sören Ehlers. "Assessing the safety effects of cooperative intelligent transport systems: A bowtie analysis approach." Accident Analysis & Prevention 99 (2017): 125-141.

Paper

Double Girder Bridge Crane with Double Cycling: Scheduling Strategy and Performance Evaluation

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URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/418689

Publication: Journal of Applied Mathematics

Volume: 2014 (3)

Pages: 12-Jan

Publication Date: 2014

Summary:

This paper introduces a novel quay crane design, a double girder bridge crane (DGBC). DGBC is capable of handling containers of two adjacent bays simultaneously, avoiding crane collisions, saving traveling and repositioning costs, and eventually improving terminal efficiency.

This problem is formulated as a resource-constrained project scheduling to minimize the maximum completion time. A two-stage heuristic algorithm is proposed in which an operating sequence on each bay is obtained by double cycling, and the integrated timetable for both bays is constructed by solving resource conflicts using the proposed minimum cost strategy. We examine effectiveness and performance of applying DGBC with double cycling.

A case study is presented to illustrate how DGBC works with the two-stage method. Three extreme cases with respective conflict types are investigated to develop the performance bounds of DGBC with double cycling.

The results show that DGBC can significantly improve terminal productivity, and outperforms single girder crane in both makespan and the lift operation percentage. The highest DGBC efficiency does not require maximum double cycles in two bay schedules; rather the integrated timetable for two bays is the main contribution to the DGBC performance as it yields better cooperation between two spreaders and the driver.

Authors: Dr. Anne Goodchild, Dandan Wang, Xiaoping Li, and Zun Wang

Recommended Citation:
Wang, Dandan, Anne Goodchild, Xiaoping Li, and Zun Wang. "Double girder bridge crane with double cycling: Scheduling strategy and performance evaluation." Journal of Applied Mathematics 2014 (2014).

Paper

A Container Terminal at the Port of Prince Rupert: Considerations from a Transportation Perspective

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URL: http://ojs.unbc.ca/index.php/cpsr/article/view/78

Publication: Canadian Political Science Review

Volume: 2(4)

Pages: 60-75

Publication Date: 2008

Summary:

This paper discusses the transport of containers between the Port of Prince Rupert and the hinterland. The result of several data collection and analysis efforts, we present a set of findings regarding the role Prince Rupert might play in North American transportation, and the particular strengths or weaknesses of this facility. In the short term, there will be no facilities for container rehandling in Prince Rupert. This activity may take place in Prince George, or more likely these importers may continue to use the facilities surrounding Vancouver. Given the current rail network, Prince George will be required to handle as much cargo as Prince Rupert. This will have negative impacts on air quality in Prince George, yet potentially positive impacts on employment and economic activity through rehandling and transloading opportunities. Due to sizeable resources in Western Canada, this Port may offer a better ratio of exports to imports than other West Coast terminals which will attract steamship lines looking for west-bound fares. Unfortunately, on multi-stop routes, this may also mean Prince Rupert is visited after other West Coast destinations, thereby reducing the benefit of being closer to Asia. Despite these uncertainties, we conclude that, because of its unique features, this Port has strong potential to impact logistics practices in a continental transportation system.

Authors: Dr. Anne Goodchild, Susan Albrecht, Tsit Lam, Kasey Faust

Recommended Citation:
Anne Goodchild, Susan Albrecht, Tsit Lam, Kasey Faust. "A Container Terminal at the Port of Prince Rupert: Considerations from a Transportation Perspective." Canadian Political Science Review 2, no. 4 (December 2008): 60-75.

Paper

Providing Curb Availability Information to Delivery Drivers Reduces Cruising for Parking

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URL: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-23987-z

Publication: Scientific Reports

Volume: (2022) 12:19355

Publication Date: 2022

Summary:

Delivery vehicle drivers are experiencing increasing challenges in finding available curb space to park in urban areas, which increases instances of cruising for parking and parking in unauthorized spaces. Policies traditionally used to reduce cruising for parking for passenger vehicles, such as parking fees and congestion pricing, are not effective at changing delivery drivers’ travel and parking behaviors.

Intelligent parking systems that use real-time curb availability information to better route and park vehicles can reduce cruising for parking, but they have never been tested for delivery vehicle drivers.

This study tested whether providing real-time curb availability information to delivery drivers reduces the travel time and distance spent cruising for parking. A curb parking information system deployed in a study area in Seattle, Wash., displayed real-time curb availabilities on a mobile app called OpenPark. A controlled experiment assigned drivers’ deliveries in the study area with and without access to OpenPark.

The data collected showed that when curb availability information was provided to drivers, their cruising for parking time significantly decreased by 27.9 percent, and their cruising distance decreased by 12.4 percent. These results demonstrate the potential for implementing intelligent parking systems to improve the efficiency of urban logistics systems.

Authors: Dr. Giacomo Dalla ChiaraFiete KruteinDr. Andisheh RanjbariDr. Anne Goodchild

Recommended Citation:
Dalla Chiara, G., Krutein, K.F., Ranjbari, A. et al. Providing curb availability information to delivery drivers reduces cruising for parking. Sci Rep 12, 19355 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-23987-z

Paper

Urban Delivery Company Needs and Preferences for Green Loading Zones Implementation: A Case Study of NYC

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URL: https://doi.org/10.1061/9780784484340.030

Publication: Proceedings of American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Transportation and Development Conference 2022: Transportation Planning and Workforce Development

Publication Date: 2022

Summary:

(This project is part of the Urban Freight Lab’s Technical Assistance Program, where UFL contributes to the project by providing 1:1 match funds in terms of staff and/or research assistants to complete project tasks.)

Green Loading Zones (GLZs) are curb spaces dedicated to the use of electric or alternative fuel (“green”) delivery vehicles. Some U.S. cities have begun piloting GLZs to incentivize companies to purchase and operate more green vehicles. However, there are several questions to be answered prior to a GLZ implementation, including siting, potential users and their willingness to pay. We reviewed best practices for GLZs around the world, and surveyed goods delivery companies operating in New York City to collect such information for a future GLZ pilot. The findings suggest the best candidate locations are areas where companies are currently subject to the most parking fines and double parking. Companies expressed willingness to pay for GLZs, as long as deploying green vehicles in the city can offset other cost exposures. Respondents also selected several single-space GLZs spread throughout a neighborhood as the preferred layout.

Authors: Thomas MaxnerNota GoulianouDr. Andisheh RanjbariDr. Anne Goodchild

Recommended Citation:
Maxner, T., Goulianou, P., Ranjbari, A., and Goodchild, A. (2022). "Studying Urban Delivery Company Needs and Preferences for Green Loading Zones Implementation: A Case Study of NYC", In Proceedings of ASCE Transportation and Development Conference (Forthcoming), Seattle, WA.