For the concept of a cityhub to succeed, the right location on the edge of the city must be chosen. The layout of the cityhub is also a critical success factor, says the ShoppingTomorrow expert group City Distribution in the bluepaper 'City distribution via an Urban Consolidation Centre; the future is closer than you think'.
The expert group presented its bluepaper to alderman Liesbeth van Tongeren in The Hague last week. The report outlines the critical success factors for delivery through an Urban Consolidation Centre (UCC), or city hub, and makes recommendations to various stakeholders to take first steps.
A cityhub should enable zero-emission delivery in the city centre. In addition, consolidating flows reduces the number of transport movements in the city. However, for a UCC to succeed, there are a number of critical success factors that need to be taken into account, argues the ShoppingTommorow expert group.
Location and clarity zero-emission area
For instance, the location of a city hub is crucial. According to the bluepaper, it should be close enough to major arterial roads and at the same time close to the city centre, so that delivery by bicycle is also possible.
To determine the right location for the UCC, it needs to be known which area of the city centre will be considered a zero-emission area from 2025. Then it will also be clear what freight volumes are involved and entrepreneurs can work towards a profitable business model. This is important for investors in logistics real estate, logistics service providers and shippers, and truck manufacturers.
Furnishing
The layout of the UCC itself must also meet a number of factors, writes the expert group. Besides things like sufficient storage space for goods and enough facilities for staff, sufficient charging systems for electric vehicles and grid capacity are crucial for this. Municipalities can play a big role in facilitating this.
Standardisation for collaboration
Other critical success factors for a profitable UCC are the processes that need to be properly set up both for goods into the city and for goods out of the city. A major challenge also lies in the standardisation of systems so that different companies can work together properly through the UCC. The puzzle of sustainable urban distribution is not simple, so the joint effort of municipalities and business remains crucial here.
Role for municipalities
Municipalities can play an important role, according to the expert group. In that context, the expert group sent a letter to over 40 municipalities in the Netherlands with the main recommendations in the research report.
