One of the disruptions brought by the COVID-19 pandemic was the reduction of in-store shopping, and the consequent increase in online shopping and home deliveries. In response, Cascade Bicycle Club started the Pedaling Relief Project (PRP) in 2020 — a nonprofit home delivery service run by volunteers using bikes to pick up food at food banks and deliver to food bank customers, among other services. The Supply Chain Transportation & Logistics Center (SCTL) and graduate Transportation Logistics students are undertaking a research study to analyze the transport and logistics system of the PRP and provide recommendations for operations improvement.
Principal Investigator(s): Dr. Giacomo Dalla Chiara, Dr. Anne Goodchild
Project Timing: March 2022 to June 2022
Project Funder: City of Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT)
Principal Investigator(s): Dr. Anne Goodchild
Project Budget: $60,000
Project Timing: January 2022 to December 2022
This project is a continuation of the West Seattle Bridge Case Study Phase I.
Background:
West Seattle (WS) is an area of the city of Seattle, Washington, located on a peninsula west of the Duwamish waterway and east of the Puget Sound. In March 2020, the West Seattle High Bridge (WSHB), the main bridge connecting WS to the rest of the city, was closed to traffic due to its increasing rate of structural deterioration.
Project Funder: City of Seattle Department of Transportation
Principal Investigator(s): Dr. Anne Goodchild
Project Budget: $32,000
Project Timing: December 2021 to December 2022
This project will build upon a previous Urban Freight Lab study (funded by the U.S. Department of Energy) that was aimed at improving commercial vehicle delivery efficiency generating and providing real-time and future parking information to delivery drivers. In this subsequent study, researchers will build upon the knowledge developed and the existing network of parking occupancy sensors installed in a 10-block study area in the Belltown neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, to explore how historical parking occupancy data can be used by urban planners and policymakers to better allocate curb space to commercial vehicles. We will use data from the sensor network and explore the relationship between the built environment (location and characteristics of establishments and urban form) and the resulting occupancy patterns of commercial vehicle load zones and passenger load zones in the study area.
Project Funder: Urban Freight Lab & Frontier Metropolitan Planning Organization (City of Fort Smith, Arkansas)
Principal Investigator(s):
Project Budget: $102,000
Project Timing: September 2021 to February 2022
(This project is part of the Urban Freight Lab's Technical Assistance Program, where UFL contributes to the project by providing 1:1 match funds in terms of staff and/or research assistants to complete project tasks.) This project seeks to examine how micro-freight hubs can increase equity to services, benefit historically marginalized communities, and be joined to share micromobility options, social service agencies and minority businesses in North Fort Smith, Arkansas. The Urban Freight Lab will assist Frontier MPO and the City of Fort Smith by sharing knowledge and providing feedback as they develop a cohesive strategy to develop a micro-freight hub pilot project that leverages community resources. The goal is to create a cohesive strategy to develop a sound planning process, to grow collaborative relationships, to produce a sustainable business model, and to implement a micro-freight hub pilot project that leverages community resources.
Project Funder: Urban Freight Lab, New York City Department of Transportation
Principal Investigator(s): Dr. Anne Goodchild
Project Budget: $56,000
Project Timing: June 2021 to November 2021
(This project is being conducted under the Urban Freight Lab's (UFL) Technical Assistance Program, where UFL contributes to the project by providing 1:1 match funds in terms of staff and/or research assistants to complete project tasks.) This project focuses on conducting targeted freight industry market research to identify strategies that can support charting a pathway to zero-emission freight strategies for New York City by 2050 and identify the associated roadblocks and barriers to entry.