Transport Problems (Oct 2014)

Urban freight distribution: council warehouses & freight by rail

  • Aleksander SŁADKOWSKI,
  • Rui DANTAS,
  • Cristian MICU,
  • Giritharan SEKAR,
  • Alfredo ARENA,
  • Vatsal SINGHANIA

Journal volume & issue
Vol. 9, no. SE
pp. 29 – 43

Abstract

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Rail is the one of the highly underused form of freight transportation in the European Union. Majority of the freightage are distributed by trucks and HGVs. With new regulations and socio-environmental concerns urban logistics is facing a new challenge which can be tackled using innovative transport mechanisms and streamline operations. This article sheds light on a system which integrates freight distribution via metro lines in the closest vicinity of the customer, use of council warehouses and further innovative transport mechanisms for final delivery. This system uses existing infrastructure effectively without impacting its surroundings and triggers the reduction of polluting carriers. This system offers the option of immediate implementation which will enable EU to compete with a global freight distribution market.

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