Freight Transport with Vans: Developments and Measures

Road freight transport in urban areas is growing regarding number of trips and mileage. Main reasons are the decreasing consignment sizes and increasing frequencies of delivery transports which are caused by individualisation of demand (incl. e-Commerce, home delivery) and the reduction of storage in central urban areas. These developments have a negative impact on the environment, quality of life and traffic safety. Only limited research has been carried out on freight transport by light freight vehicles below a maximum weight of 3.5 t. The research project which has been carried out in the framework of a Swiss national research programme on freight transport aimed to investigate the role of the van in logistics and freight transport against the backdrop of developments and influencing factors, to identify key issues, to deduce need for action, to propose strategic thrust and measures as well as to judge them in terms of impact and acceptance.