Replacing home deliveries by deliveries to parcel lockers: cost, traffic, emissions, and societal cost effects of locker network expansions in greater Oslo

Abstract

This study assesses the effects of using parcel lockers as an alternative to home deliveries, combined with different locker network expansions. We use empirical shipment data and real-world routing optimisation procedures to demonstrate that increased parcel locker use can reduce logistics costs, traffic, and emissions from last-mile distribution of a logistics service provider. Unlike many existing studies, we also comprehensively estimate overall societal effects, including recipients’ pick-up trips, using detailed travel behaviour data. For society overall, we find a robust and considerable potential for CO2 reductions (13–32 percent) by replacing home deliveries with parcel locker deliveries, even under conservative assumptions on travel modes and pick-up trips. Similarly, we find reductions in external (societal) damage costs, driven by reduced traffic. We further highlight several important dynamics between network expansion strategies, recipient coverage, last-mile efficiency, and pick-up trips, that are highly relevant for the decision-making of logistics service providers and policy-makers.