Modeling municipal solid waste collection: A generalized vehicle routing model with multiple transfer stations, gather sites and inhomogeneous vehicles in time windows

• We focused on modeling municipal solid waste collection by various objectives.
• A generalized optimal vehicle routing model was presented.
• The model included inhomogeneous vehicles, multiple stations and gather sites.
• It is capable to handle the limitations of existing VR models.
• A case study at Danang city, Vietnam was given to illustrate the applicability.

Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) collection is a necessary process in any municipality resulting in the quality-of-life, economic aspects and urban structuralization. The intrinsic nature of MSW collection relates to the development of effective vehicle routing models that optimize the total traveling distances of vehicles, the environmental emission and the investment costs. In this article, we propose a generalized vehicle routing model including multiple transfer stations, gather sites and inhomogeneous vehicles in time windows for MSW collection. It takes into account traveling in one-way routes, the number of vehicles per m2 and waiting time at traffic stops for reduction of operational time. The proposed model could be used for scenarios having similar node structures and vehicles’ characteristics. A case study at Danang city, Vietnam is given to illustrate the applicability of this model. The experimental results have clearly shown that the new model reduces both total traveling distances and operational hours of vehicles in comparison with those of practical scenarios. Optimal routes of vehicles on streets and markets at Danang are given. Those results are significant to practitioners and local policy makers.