Overview
Goods, waste and service trips in urban areas impose negative traffic and environmental impacts, and there is a need for cost-effective and sustainable solutions. The CITYLAB project (City Logistics in Living Laboratories) aims to develop knowledge and solutions that will result in the long-term roll-out of strategies, measures and tools to move towards emission-free city logistics in urban centres by 2030. The core of CITYLAB is seven living laboratories, where cities act as test beds for innovation and implementation of measures to aid both public and private enterprises, contributing to increased efficiency and sustainable urban logistics. The cities involved are Brussels, London, Oslo, Paris, Rome, Rotterdam and Southampton, cooperating with local research and industry partners to test and evaluate a series of logistics measures. These deal with new distribution models, clean vehicles, a floating depot, initiatives for utilising free van capacity, consolidation of deliveries to large public institutions and shopping centres, integration of direct and reverse logistics, and logistics hotels aimed at counter-balancing logistics sprawl. Linkages will be established between the different living labs for exchange of experiences, and the project will provide a platform for replicating and spreading the supported measures.
CITYLAB aims to:
Improve basic knowledge and understanding about the impacts of freight distribution and service trips in urban areas
Test and implement seven innovative urban freight management solutions that could positively influence business profitability, reduce traffic and emissions, and have wider roll-out potential for the logistics sector
Provide a platform for replicating and disseminating the supported solutions.