The current paper reports the results of the investigation made to determine the possibilities of promoting a coordinated goods delivery system to various galleria, located in the city centre, to reduce congestion and environmental impact. Uppsala is the 4th biggest city in Sweden and has a very narrow city centre. Increasingly frequent goods delivery performed by less than half-loaded distribution vehicles lead to the consequences of congestion, traffic accidents, and pollution, particularly in the city centre. It was assumed that a co-ordinated distribution system is among the plausible strategies to address the current problem. The objective of the work is to investigate the possibilities of a co-ordinated distribution system in Uppsala city using a 'city goods terminal', which should be located at the suburb of the city. To reach the objective, the activities performed were: (a) mapping out goods flow to the four main galleria that are located in the city centre, (b) conducting a demonstration trial of coordinated distribution, and (c) determining constraints and possibilities of coordinated goods distribution. 97 transport companies delivered goods to these galleria. 15 to 60 deliveries were performed per day to each galleria and intensive deliveries were made before and during lunch. About 43% of the delivered goods were food including bread, brewery and dairy products, fruits and vegetables and about 69% of food deliveries were made before 11 a.m. Queue time was significant and the actual unloading time was found to be less than 50% of the duration of the delivery. Nine boutiques participated in the small-scale demonstration trial on coordinated goods delivery from the terminal to galleria and it continued for a year. Goods were first delivered from suppliers to the terminal that was situated at the suburb of the city and thereafter to the galleria according to the time specified by the retailers. The result of the mapping activities indicates that transport systems can be effective through coordination. The practical demonstration also confirmed this. In the current trial, the number of deliveries reduced by 40% through coordination. The main conclusion of this work is that information, communication and change of attitude play central roles to promote coordination, and dialog between retailers, distributors and suppliers is necessary and essential. For the covering abstract see ITRD E128239.
Samenvatting