Supply Chains and Urban Logistics Platforms - Sustainable Urban Logistics: Concepts, Methods and Information Systems - page 5

Urban area

CONSOLIDATED
TRANSPORT

APPROACH
TRANSPORT

LAST
KILOMETER

Utility van, tram-
freight…

Train, lorry,barge… Electric vehicles…

ULS UL S ULS

Urban area

Fig. 2 Possible organizational scheme for Urban logistics

• Take into account the needs in surface necessary to sustain the activities of
urban logistics.
• Lead a reflection on the existing and future infrastructures in the perspective of a
multimodal offer.

In this approach, the reorganization of flows in judiciously chosen places is
required. Indeed, the environmental, economic and functional conditions are dif-
ferent depending on the location (periphery, city centre…). Local authorities must
then determine the orientations of the transport policy according to the location in
order to favour an efficient supply chain in terms of urban insertion and quality of
service. These sorts of policies imply points of articulation (ULSs) that can take
various forms depending on the type of activity and demand (volumes and
products to deliver, surfaces…).
The possible organizational schemes are multiple and reversible as they are
affected to inputs (goods consumption) and outputs (production and waste) of
products. The main principles can be represented in the Fig. 2 .
The stakes linked to the implementation of such tools are connected to the
targets defined by the urban planners. We can quote three main subjects.
Environmental stakes: they are essentially the consequences of the actions of
goods movements. Considered the energetic assessment is a pertinent indicator to
measure these effects, it is noticeable that goods movements represent 30 % of the
global impacts of urban transports (in vehicle.km, also equivalent for green-house
gases). A more precise approach (Ségalou et al. 2004 ) for each pollutant emission
allows to determine that nitrogen oxides is accountable for 40 %, and even 45 %
for particulate matter, of the global impacts of transport in cities. These data are
directly concern in the health of individuals are now proven and cannot be ignored
by local authorities. In a larger point of view, the effects on traffic are today the