Transforming Urban Logistics: Sustainable and Efficient Last-Mile Delivery in Cities

The report warns that without intervention, urban delivery vehicle numbers and carbon emissions could rise by approximately 60% by 2030. It proposes a shift toward zero-emission fleets, microhubs, and pick-up/drop-off (PUDO) networks, while recommending that city governments integrate logistics into urban planning via sustainable urban logistics plans (SULPs) and implement smart kerbside management.

• Under a business-as-usual scenario, global carbon emissions from urban delivery traffic are projected to increase by 60% by 2030, accounting for roughly 13% of total city emissions and 54% of the transport sector's emissions.
• The growth of e-commerce is driving a surge in delivery vehicles, with some cities potentially seeing an 80% increase by 2030; globally, the number of these vehicles could rise by more than 60% by 2030.
• Business-as-usual growth in deliveries is expected to increase urban congestion by 14% on average, adding five minutes to the average 10km commute and resulting in up to 200 hours of lost productivity annually per delivery vehicle.
• Replacing internal combustion engine (ICE) vans with electric vehicles (EVs) can reduce carbon emissions by up to 85%, while switching from ICE two-wheelers to e-bikes can cut emissions by 90% and reduce last-mile delivery costs by 22%.
• White-label delivery models, which combine urban consolidation centres and microhubs to allow one courier to handle the final stretch for multiple retailers, can reduce the number of journeys by 30% and total delivery costs by 51% when using zero-emission micromobility.
• Pick-up and drop-off (PUDO) networks, such as parcel lockers and shops, can reduce the number of delivery trips by up to 15%, lower delivery costs by up to 15%, and reduce congestion by up to 2%.
• The use of single-operator microhubs for cross-docking, particularly when dispatching via zero-emission two-wheelers, can lower carbon emissions by up to 93% and reduce congestion by up to 11%.
• Smart kerbside management and strategically planned delivery parking zones can reduce urban congestion by 3% and carbon emissions by 9%.
• Financial penalties for non-compliance with low-emission zones and congestion charges are projected to be significant by 2030, accounting for approximately 9% of delivery costs in London and 12% in Seoul.

APA

World Economic Forum (2024). Transforming Urban Logistics: Sustainable and Efficient Last-Mile Delivery in Cities. https://reports.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Transforming_Urban_Logistics_2024.pdf

Chicago

World Economic Forum. Transforming Urban Logistics: Sustainable and Efficient Last-Mile Delivery in Cities. 2024. https://reports.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Transforming_Urban_Logistics_2024.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Economic Forum |title=Transforming Urban Logistics: Sustainable and Efficient Last-Mile Delivery in Cities |date=December 2024 |url=https://reports.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Transforming_Urban_Logistics_2024.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldeconomicforum2024transforming, author = {{World Economic Forum}}, title = {{Transforming Urban Logistics: Sustainable and Efficient Last-Mile Delivery in Cities}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2024}, month = dec, url = {https://reports.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Transforming_Urban_Logistics_2024.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }