Urban stakeholders have divergent interests in the use of public space in cities and should be considered in city-planning of urban freight. This paper explores Swedish urban stakeholder's interests in the use of public space. A literature review on Urban Freight Stakeholders (UFSs) with direct impact on city-planning, and their interest’ in the use of public space was conducted and used as a theoretical foundation in a cross-case analysis of two Swedish cities. Forty-five semi-structured interviews, and forty-one answers from a multiple-choice question were used as empirical data in the evaluation of UFSs' interests. The paper shows that interests' of UFSs which contribute to attractive urban environment should be considered in city-planning of urban freight. In addition, policies on road safety, decoration of the city environment and pricing the use of public space in cities need to be developed at local authorities. The paper confirms property owners as UFSs with similar accessibility and service interests as local authorities in the city-planning of urban freight. The literature review of published research and a cross-case analysis of Swedish UFSs' interests in public space in two cities provides insights for further development of research to enrich theory and city-planning of urban freight.

Commercial activity and the underlying freight movements supporting them are essential to urban life. Unfortunately, urban freight has negative effects on sustainability and requires innovative approaches to enhance the positive aspects and minimize the negative ones. There is a common understanding among practitioners, with support from the literature, that the negative impacts of urban freight can be alleviated with better knowledge about the system and by identifying and engaging influential stakeholders. This paper focuses on property owners and their role in encouraging initiatives that lead to more sustainable urban freight delivery practices. Property owners engage in sustainability issues in real estate because they are interested in developing their properties to increase their attractiveness, competitiveness, and future market value. A shopping mall is an example of a property that generates a lot of freight traffic due to intense commercial activity. This paper studies the delivery patterns to a centrally located shopping mall in the city of Gothenburg and identifies how property owners could influence the delivery patterns of their tenants. A range of initiatives is proposed based on the literature and considering the delivery patterns observed. The results show that property owners can include freight deliveries in their sustainability strategy, focusing on fostering collaboration and communication between the tenants and promoting supply chain strategies that consider the type of activities that take place and the scope to reduce the number of truck movements and increase the efficient and sustainable goods deliveries.

The research in this thesis focused on organisations that can contribute to increased sustainability development in urban freight transport activities. In this study, these organisations were identified, studied, grouped together and labelled as influencing organisations. Four types of influencing organisations in urban freight transport were identified: Business Improvement Districts (BIDs), facility management companies, property owners and public procurement organisations. The results indicated that influencing organisations use a variety of measures and engage in a wide range of urban freight transport initiatives. The way that they engage depends on the types of organisations involved and the relationships the influencers had with said organisations. The findings suggest that influencing organisations have certain characteristics, including: i) the ability to unite other actors, notably goods receivers (such as shops, offices, hotels, restaurants), ii) high motivation to engage in urban freight transport-related questions and sustainability, iii) possessing effective tools to promote sustainable measures, such as the capability to orchestrate and consolidate physical flows, leverage based on contractual relationships, administrative power, outreach power and serving as a common voice for establishments. This places them in a strong position to support the upscaling of sustainable urban freight transport initiatives and broaden the level of implementation. This study paid attention to actors beyond those that are directly associated with urban freight supply chains (carriers, shippers, goods receivers and regulators) to increase the understanding of the role of these organisations in promoting sustainability improvements in urban freight transport activities. The in-depth analysis of the activities carried out by influencing organisations shows why it is important to include them within the scope of urban freight measures and policies: i) they help to overcome the inertia inhibiting the implementation of sustainable urban freight transport initiatives, and ii) they have a connection to many goods receivers as well as the leverage to influence and possibly unite them. Moreover, influencers often have available resources to invest in new infrastructural solutions or processes and the motivation and incentives to carry out these initiatives, thus allowing this engagement to be beneficial both for them and the sustainable development of cities. The results of this thesis provide insights for policymakers about forming policies and regulations to stimulate the engagement of influencers in urban freight transport. This research illustrates to the influencing organisations themselves that they can play a valuable role in the future trajectory of urban freight transport development, as well as examples of ways to change urban freight transport to be more sustainable. 

This paper explores the ways in which Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) can promote initiatives that lead to more sustainable urban goods movements in urban areas. The qualitative research was conducted by studying eight BIDs in three cities and in three countries - all the BIDs studied had considered or taken actions related to urban freight and sustainability. The results show that BIDs in different countries have similarities and differences in their organisational structure and functions, the main services provided and readiness to promote initiatives related to urban freight improvements. We identified that differences in their accomplishments relate to their motivation, awareness of the scope to influence urban freight and the extent of their collaboration with local and city authorities concerning urban freight initiatives. In general, we suggest that BIDs have the potential to act as important influencers in urban freight as they (i) unite the receivers and encourage them to address joint operations that bring economic and environmental benefits (ii) give the receivers the possibility to implement changes through the power of collective action (iii) facilitate the dialogue and collaboration with local and city authorities. As a result, we suggest that the measures directed to BIDs on improving urban freight can have much more significant return on time and funds invested than if invested in a single businesses and organisations. Our recommendation to BIDs that would like to reach higher level of accomplishments is to ensure stakeholder engagement including engaging and collaboration with local authorities and to demonstrate their willingness to take a lead.

The importance of stakeholders in the development of a sustainable urban freight sector has been highlighted in recent research. Not all stakeholders have a direct link to the supply chain, but they may still play a role in creating sustainable urban freight initiatives. This study explores the initiatives that norm-setting indirect stakeholders in urban freight, referred to as ‘influencers’, establish to support a more sustainable urban freight sector, and how those initiatives may impact the business models of carriers. The study uses data gathered for ongoing research into the roles of indirect stakeholders in the development of sustainable urban freight initiatives. The results indicate that influencers can put pressure on receivers regarding logistical issues and shape the physical environment in which deliveries are conducted. Influencers use three primary strategies to support sustainable urban freight: vehicle-focused measures, consolidation linked to physical infrastructure, and consolidation through behavioural changes. These initiatives impact the relationship between receivers and carriers and may push carriers to adopt more sustainable practices as well as take decisions that impact their business models. The results highlight the often-overlooked power of influencers in relation to the development of actor behaviour in the urban freight supply chain and show the potential for both conflict and change arising from the use of this power.

This study explores how norm-setting third-party urban freight stakeholders, referred to as ´influencers’, may indirectly put pressure on carriers in the urban freight setting. The paper indicates that influencers have a potential to initiate considerable change in how carriers shape their business models. The results thus bring to light the often-overlooked power that influencers have in relation to the development of actor behavior along the urban freight supply chain.

Purpose: During the last decade, the establishment of distribution systems in cities has attracted an increased interest in the society as well as in academia. City-logistic implies distribution of goods critical to the everyday life in a flexible urban environment with regard to public- and industrial stakeholder interests. Based on different stakeholder interests, there is a standing need to evaluate the use of public space (PS) an urban environment. Yet, there is still an uncertainty about stakeholder interests as well as stakeholders rights to influence the use of PS in the urban environment. The purpose of this paper is to present a conceptual framework to evaluate the use of PS with regard to stakeholder interests.

Research Approach: A literature review of published research on city-logistics was conducted to create a framework for evaluation interests in PS. The conceptual framework includes the use of PS in urban environment. Based on the presented conceptual framework, stakeholder interests and rights to influence the usage of PS in an urban environment have been evaluated based on empirical data from a single in-depth case study of a Swedish city. Empirical data from participant observations and a survey questionnaire were used as empirical evidence in the evaluation.

Findings and Originality: The findings illustrate evaluation of stakeholder interests and rights to influence the use of PS in an urban environment. Main findings include enhanced understanding of different stakeholder interests. The paper contributes to the understanding of an issue is been important in implementing city-logistics, but still not much addressed in published logistics literature: the use of PS. The combination of published research on city-logistics, and analysis of different stakeholder's interests and rights to influence the use of PS provides interesting insight from which further research can be developed to enrich theory and management of city-logistics.

Research Impact: The paper contributes to existing research on city-logistics. In particular, it presents a conceptual framework to evaluate stakeholder interests’ and rights to influence the use of PS for implementation of city-logistics.

Practical Impact: Managers are recommended to sue the framework to evaluate stakeholder rights to influence to use of use of PS for city-logistic purposes.

Most urban freight research has focused on the need to change the behaviour of transport operators (carriers) either through incentives or more commonly through regulation. In the past few years researchers have started to address the scope to involve receivers (mainly retailers) in the reduction of urban freight trips. Typical initiatives include joint procurement or the possible use of consolidation centres. However, this focus on carriers and receivers potentially ignores the role of intermediary organisations that can strongly influence the patterns of urban freight movements and the way in which deliveries are made in urban centres. These intermediary organizations cover a wide variety of types including: Business Improvement Districts (BIDs), public sector purchasing coordinators that establish framework contracts and in the private sector - facilities managers. The paper explores the activities of 10 intermediary organisations in Sweden, UK and USA. An exploratory case study approach has been adopted and the activities of the organisations are summarised in order to enable acomparative assessment to be made. Findings support the contention that intermediary organisations have a powerful role to play in influencing urban freight demand and that their ability to bring together individual receivers is a significant opportunity for achieving more rapid and profound changes in urban freight flows and vehicle movements. The scope for changing procurement in both the public and private sector is also highlighted as one outcome of the research.

Abstract 

Purpose: During the past 5-10 years there has been an increasing interest in urban freight activities due to desire to reduce the environmental impact of freight movements in cities while at the same time maintaining efficiency. One way that has been promoted to achieve this has been the urban consolidation centers. However, some of these initiatives have been argued to be costly and their take up has been limited. The purpose of this research is to contribute to the research on receivers by comparing two organisations that provide procurement services - one in the public sector and one in the private sector. Potential differences exist between public sector and private sector procurement behavior and the research will explore this and consider the possible importance of intermediary organisations that can provide a link between the receivers and the carriers.

Research Approach: The paper adopts an exploratory research approach based on a review of relevant literature about transport purchasing and the purchasing behavior of managers in the public and private sectors. This review is then supported by several in-depth interviews. Following the interviews two case studies have been prepared one concerned with public sector procurement and the other with the private sector. These case studies are summarised in the paper and similarities and differences are considered.

Findings and Originality: Most urban freight research has focused on carriers. However, receivers possess considerable supply chain power and their decisions can strongly influence urban goods deliveries. This research identifies some important features of the role played by organisations which are neither receivers nor carriers but instead play an intermediary role within the urban supply chain.

Research Impact: In particular, the focus of this paper is on the procurement patterns of public and private organizations and potential difference between them. Potential impact of this work would be the contribution to the knowledge about the receivers’ side and their purchasing behavior in relation to the freight generation aspect of urban freight. This study can contribute to the knowledge about consolidation of the goods delivered to the receivers and how the receivers or those organisations working with receivers can trigger it by their procurement practices.

Practical Impact: Practical impact can be the knowledge on the influence of goods consolidation activities via changes in organization procurement practices.