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Every day dozens of delivery trucks drive into Lucerne’s old town. The city government wants to change that. Not an easy task.
Markus Rast loads a hand truck with boxes full of French fries. He routinely balances the freight to a restaurant. The 63-year-old has been working as a delivery person in the city of Lucerne for almost his entire professional life.
Legend:
French fries, but also fresh vegetables: Markus Rast’s delivery truck is loaded with 1.1 tons of food.
SRF/Primus Ettlin
Markus Rast is used to delivering his goods in the shortest possible distances: “I drive like I did 40 years ago. I try to avoid zigzags.” In contrast to the 1980s, everyday working life is much more hectic today: “There used to not be that much traffic in the old town.”
More people, more consumption
This problem will become even worse in the coming years: The Federal Office for Spatial Development expects that the number of kilometers traveled by vans will increase by 58 percent between 2022 and 2050. Home office and a growing population are causing growth in private online orders, waste management or more deliveries to the catering industry, like those from Markus Rast.
Legend:
Crossing is impossible here: the entrances to Lucerne’s old town are sometimes very narrow.
SRF/Primus Ettlin
A lot of CO₂ is produced on these journeys. Markus Rast’s delivery van also has a diesel engine. This is not compatible with the city of Lucerne’s climate goals. This wants to be climate neutral by 2040. That’s why more vehicles with electric drives are needed.
The city of Lucerne does not want to subsidize change
But a fundamental change is also needed, says Environment and Mobility Director Adrian Borgula: “We have to try to combine trips, make them more environmentally friendly or avoid them altogether.” The city government therefore recently published a planning report.
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He wants greener transport of goods: Lucerne city councilor Adrian Borgula.
Keystone/Urs Flüeler
It is conceivable, for example, that Lucerne would provide transshipment points for shared transport. This means fewer, more full trucks should drive through the city. There is no provision for transport companies to receive direct financial support. For Adrian Borgula it is clear that more environmentally friendly logistics is also in the interests of the economy: “More efficient also means more cost-effective.”
Legend:
Klaus Bonanomi, business editor for Radio SRF
SRF
SRF News: What trends are emerging when it comes to logistics in the city center?
Klaus Bonanomi: Many cities face the same problems; there is no panacea. Essentially, it’s always about avoiding empty runs and long periods of standing in traffic jams. In order to use the vehicles as efficiently as possible, the use of artificial intelligence could become more important. Autonomous vehicles are also being tested, although no clear advantage is yet apparent. Except that they don’t need drivers, which can certainly be an argument in times of labor shortages.
What are the biggest hurdles for greener city logistics?
If the delivery time does not play a crucial role, a delivery vehicle can be fully loaded and its route adjusted. “Just in time” deliveries are more difficult to plan and often less efficient to execute. Of course, there are also increasing problems with space on the streets and sidewalks. Cargo bikes can definitely be an alternative here.
Do consumers have to pay more for greener deliveries?
Ideally, efficient city logistics should not become more expensive. If, thanks to smart planning, vehicles sit in traffic jams or drive around empty for less time, then there are fewer unnecessary costs. On the other hand, delivery services within a city definitely come at a price: from the environmental impact of fossil-fuelled delivery vans to the use of increasingly limited road space to appropriate wages for the drivers.
“A central goods hub is an interesting scenario,” says Emanuel Renggli, managing director of Vermo AG and boss of chauffeur Markus Rast. “It is questionable whether this can be implemented.”
Legend:
The storage capacity in the old town is expensive – and therefore limited.
SRF/Primus Ettlin
It happens again and again that something is forgotten and is therefore reordered. Or food would be requested for a breakfast buffet that could not arrive until 11 a.m. “A central logistics solution requires a rethink on the part of the supplier, but also on the part of the customer,” demands entrepreneur Emanuel Renggli.
Limited storage space leads to many journeys
Markus Rast’s everyday life shows how difficult it is to change these processes: In the cold room of a restaurant, he barely squeezes an order onto the narrow shelves. “Many businesses don’t have much space, which is why I deliver to them practically every day.”
Customers order vegetables from Zurich and frozen goods from Bern – where it costs the least.
In addition, companies often order from various retailers, the supplier observes. “Customers order vegetables from Zurich and frozen goods from Bern – where it costs the least.” If fewer trucks drive into the city, it will be more expensive for companies.