The integration of passenger and freight transport for first-last mile operations

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The integration of passenger and freight transport for first-last mile operations

Bruzzone, Francesco / Cavallaro, Federico / Nocera, Silvio

Abstract The “First-Last Mile” problem (FLM) is a relevant transport issue. According to the Green Paper on Urban Mobility, the combination of passenger and freight flows may be a valid approach to promote sustainable, efficient and socially desirable FLM transport. This paper proposes a set of key performance indicators to evaluate potential improvements in operational, environmental and social performances of integrated passenger and freight flows, compared to the current transport schemes. The two case studies of the Northern lagoon of Venice in Italy and the Slovenian Municipality of Velenje indicate that the model may be particularly effective in those cases where reduced freight volumes, limited freight pickup/delivery locations and a lower elasticity of the travel demand reduce the constraints to the adoption of this integrated scheme. Results call for a reduction both in distances travelled and in externalities produced, and hence a good potential in FLM terms. Beside these technical aspects, one of the main issues is the need for innovation in the normative/regulatory context: a prerequisite in order to apply this solution to real-life contexts.

Highlights • First-Last Mile is a main issue for both passenger and freight transport. • Their combination in first/last leg can help reducing operational and external costs. • A set of KPIs is proposed to evaluate the effectiveness of this innovative scheme. • KPIs are tested in two case studies involving different transport modes. • The regulatory context needs an update to allow the real application of this model.