City Logistics and Smart Cities: Models, Approaches and Planning

A special issue of Smart Cities (ISSN 2624-6511).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 February 2025 | Viewed by 1484

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Engineering, University of Messina, 98158 Messina, Italy
Interests: transport system simulation; city logistics; freight transport; vehicle routing, micromobility
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Engineering, University of Messina, 98158 Messina, Italy
Interests: demand analysis; pavement engineering; mobility; logistics; road construction; transportation systems; urban transportation; transportation planning; civil engineering; system analysis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

City logistics aims to optimize the logistics and the transport activities in urban areas, considering their interaction with other traffic components with the support of new technologies. These activities must consider the sustainability and livability of the urban context (e.g., environmental impacts, safety). The issues connected with the recent increase in online purchases, also influenced by COVID-19, posed new problems to solve and new challenges to face. Therefore, it emerges that city logistics require the development of integrated and dynamic solutions, for example, those based on information and communication technologies (ICTs) and intelligent transport systems (ITSs). To support these solutions, simulation models, design approaches, and planning must be implemented. The aim is to identify, simulate, and optimize all the activities that characterize city logistics and its impacts on the city.

Therefore, the purpose of this Special Issue is to gather new research in this field, considering the challenges resulting from the use of new technologies. The topics of interest include but are not limited to the following:

  • Discrete models in city logistics;
  • Planning urban freight distribution;
  • City logistics management and control;
  • Travel cost and learning processes;
  • Vehicle routes optimization in urban areas;
  • Forecasting end consumer choices;
  • Forecasting urban freight flows;
  • ICTs and ITSs for city logistics;
  • Analysis of the impacts of city logistics;
  • Green vehicles;
  • Shopping trips;
  • New services for city logistics (crowd shipping, parcel lockers, etc.)

Dr. Antonio Polimeni
Dr. Orlando M. Belcore
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Smart Cities is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2000 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • city logistics
  • urban freight distribution
  • green urban logistics
  • e-commerce
  • green vehicles
  • city logistics management
  • light freight vehicles
  • freight vehicle route optimization
  • city logistics planning

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

21 pages, 3077 KiB  
Article
Drone-Assisted Last-Mile Delivery Under Windy Conditions: Zero Pollution Solutions
by Özlem Gürel and Seyda Serdarasan
Smart Cities 2024, 7(6), 3437-3457; https://doi.org/10.3390/smartcities7060134 - 10 Nov 2024
Viewed by 1115
Abstract
As cities expand and the global push for zero pollution intensifies, sustainable last-mile delivery (LMD) systems are essential to minimizing environmental and health impacts. This study addresses the need for more sustainable LMD by examining the integration of wind conditions into drone-assisted deliveries, [...] Read more.
As cities expand and the global push for zero pollution intensifies, sustainable last-mile delivery (LMD) systems are essential to minimizing environmental and health impacts. This study addresses the need for more sustainable LMD by examining the integration of wind conditions into drone-assisted deliveries, focusing on their effects on air and noise pollution in urban areas. We extend the flying sidekick traveling salesman problem (FSTSP) by incorporating meteorological factors, specifically wind, to assess drone delivery efficiency in varying conditions. Our results show that while drones significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions compared to traditional delivery vehicles, their contribution to noise pollution remains a concern. This research highlights the environmental advantages of using drones, particularly in reducing CO2 emissions, while also emphasizing the need for further investigation into mitigating their noise impact. By evaluating the trade-offs between air and noise pollution, this study provides insights into developing more sustainable, health-conscious delivery models that contribute to smart city initiatives. The findings inform policy, urban planning, and logistics strategies aimed at achieving zero pollution goals and improving urban livability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue City Logistics and Smart Cities: Models, Approaches and Planning)
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