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21st Century Operations Using 21st Century Technologies

United States - European Commission Urban Freight Twinning Initiative: Compendium of Project Summaries, Volume II
Overview of 2018-2019 International Urban Freight Roundtables

Data-Driven Design of Last Mile Urban Logistics Solutions to Address E-Commerce Growth

Online shopping and associated e-commerce growth are inevitable. Changes in consumer behavior will impact the way goods are moved through supply chains, particularly in an urban context. This project has two main objectives. First, to collect data that allows the team to understand and model e-commerce derived freight flows. Primary data is being collected through household surveys, and secondary data is being collected via partnerships with companies providing e-commerce delivery services. Second, it aims to propose and test a modeling and simulation framework that allows the team to replicate e-commerce flows, and assess changes in status quo through demand management techniques and associated mobility system impacts.

Project Types

Research, Policy.

Period of Performance

June 2018 - June 2020.

Project Site

Singapore, Singapore.

Contact

Lynette Cheah
Assistant Professor
Singapore University of Technology and Design
Singapore, Singapore
Lynette_Cheah@sutd.edu.sg
+65 6499-4740

Topics Addressed

  • Land use interactions.
  • Last mile delivery.
  • Logistics/distribution.
  • Mobility/congestion.
  • Modeling.
  • Supply chains.

Expected Outcomes

The project will develop insights into: (a) methods to collect data and derive behavioral models and simulate e-commerce freight vehicle flows; and (b) impact of demand management strategies for future growth scenarios.

Stakeholder Involvement

Research team: Singapore University of Technology and Design, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology; partner government agencies: Urban Redevelopment Authority, Land Transport Authority, JTC Corporation. All agencies provide key inputs into the policies being analyzed throughout the study as well as support for the data collection efforts.

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