A Sustainable Micromobility Framework for Freight Deliveries in Urban Environments

The United States continues its reliance on petroleum to propel vehicles, heat buildings, and produce electricity. In 2022, the transportation sector accounted for 66.6% of total U.S. petroleum consumption. More specifically, freight truck fuel consumption increased by 16.5% from 2011 to 2021 while truck vehicle- miles-traveled increased by 22.4%. These trends are concerning to transportation planners and policymakers across the country because cities are facing the ever-growing challenge of urban freight transportation demand and its harmful associated externalities (i.e., congestion, traffic conflicts, and pollutants). An approach that has gained significant attention as a potential solution to oil dependency in freight transportation and corollary emissions is micromobility. Micromobility is broadly defined as any small, low-speed, human- or electric-powered transportation device, such as bicycles and scooters. In recent years, micromobility transportation options such as cargo cycles (including manually- and electrically-powered bicycles and tricycles) have been considered by many cities as a potential alternative for making last-leg deliveries because of their advantages over fuel-powered vehicles. These advantages include their ability to use both roadways and cycle lanes, their potential to reduce shipping fees (since they save in parking, congestion charges, and fuel costs), and the fact that they produce zero emissions.

• Record URL:
  https://fersc.utk.edu/research-focus/fersc-projects-year-2/

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $60000
• Contract Numbers:

  69-A3552348338

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

  University Transportation Centers Program
  Department of Transportation
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Managing Organizations:

  Center for Freight Transportation for Efficient and Resilient Supply Chain

  University of Tennessee Knoxville
  Knoxville, TN  United States  37996
• Project Managers:

  Bruner, Britain

  Kaplan, Marcella

• Performing Organizations:

  Oregon State University, Corvallis

  Department of Civil Engineering
  202 Apperson Hall
  Corvallis, OR  United States  97331-2302
• Principal Investigators:

  Porter, David

  Hernandez, Salvador

  Carleton, Philip

• Start Date: 20241001
• Expected Completion Date: 20250930
• Actual Completion Date: 0
• USDOT Program: University Transportation Centers Program

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Delivery service; First mile and last mile; Micromobility; Multimodal transportation; Urban areas
• Subject Areas: Freight Transportation; Operations and Traffic Management; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01929244
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Center for Freight Transportation for Efficient and Resilient Supply Chain
• Contract Numbers: 69-A3552348338
• Files: UTC, RIP
• Created Date: Aug 29 2024 5:23PM