Equity Embedded Hybrid Truck-Drone Delivery Routing Design for Rural Areas

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, around 14% of the U.S. population lives in rural areas, with a higher percentage of seniors and increased poverty rates compared to urban areas. Rural regions face unique challenges such as sparse population density, limited infrastructure, and geographic isolation, leading to economic and social disparities. To address these issues, logistics companies like DHL and UPS have introduced hybrid truck-drone delivery systems for better service coverage. This hybrid system combines the long-range capabilities of trucks with the flexibility of drones for last-mile delivery, offering potential solutions for rural logistic challenges. However, the success of these systems depends on their efficiency, particularly in solving the truck- drone routing problem to optimize delivery routes.

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

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $150000
• 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:

  Texas A&M University, College Station

  Zachry Department of Civil Engineering
  3136 TAMU
  College Station, TX  United States  77843-3136
• Principal Investigators:

  Zhou, Yang

  Wang, Bruce

• Start Date: 20240701
• Expected Completion Date: 20250630
• Actual Completion Date: 0
• USDOT Program: University Transportation Centers Program

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Delivery service; Drones; First mile and last mile; Freight transportation; Routing; Rural areas; Transportation equity; Trucking
• Subject Areas: Freight Transportation; Operations and Traffic Management; Society;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01929239
• 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 4:41PM