David Guerrero (p), Hidekazu Ito , Kenmei Tsubota

Jean-Claude Thill

This paper explores the relationships between freight rates and the positions of urban areas (UAs) within an urban hierarchy. Drawing on a survey on freight flows and rates between 45 Japanese prefectures, from 2000 to 2010,it shows that inter-urban freight rates are negatively related to the population sizes of origin and destination UAs. Shipping cargo from large UA to small UA is significantly more expensive than in the reverse direction. Regional-specific factors, such the incoterms most commonly chosen by firms, seem to play non-negligible roles as well.

Adeline Heitz (p)

Jean-Claude Thill

This paper aims to analyze the location’s choice of logistics facilities in the Paris Region. Many works have already looked at these location’s choice factors, our study aims to provide new perspectives on this location regarding spatial distribution and freight flows. From an urban planning and geography perspective, research on urban logistics have mainly focused on the proximity of logistics facilities to the consumers. To deliver goods the most efficiently, carriers and shippers look for facilities and available land to close to city center, in dense part of the metro area. Urban logistics focus on deliveries and last miles and takes little account of the entire network in which the warehouse is part. On the other side, researches on freight and logistics in the field of supply chain management, which are not focused on the “last mile”, explained the location of logistics facilities by the transport costs. Both of those two perspectives have contributed to explain the location of logistics facilities. In this paper, we propose a holistic approach in order to combine short and long distance perspectives to explain the location of logistics facilities. By examined the case of the Paris region, we propose to explain the location of the logistics facilities at different scale regarding freight flows (from suppliers to consumers).

Nierat Patrick (p)

Jean-Claude Thill

In many cities, local government implements urban logistics measures to achieve sustainable development. At the same time, national authorities promote the use of combined transport for long-distance trade because of its environmental qualities. For this solution, the economic analysis shows that it is cost effective when the carrier finds its customers within a market area around the terminal. The location of the terminal therefore appears as a fundamental factor in the efficiency of combined transport.
Where the terminal should be located in relation to the carrier’s interest? Should it be closer to the city or should it be located away from it? What will be the induced nuisances, especially in terms of traffic?
To shed some light onto these issues, a case study has been carried out on a rail-road carrier. It makes use of rail services between the south-east of France and Paris terminals; it collects and delivers the goods by trucks. The activity of the 74 trucks assigned to pre- and post-haulage around Paris has been monitored. We collected detailed data such as origins, destinations, filling ratio and repositioning routes. Company’s performance parameters (daily mileage, empty load rate, number of operations per truck…) have been used to calculate its theoretical market area.
Through a comparison between theoretical and observed market areas, we question the location of the terminal in relation to the center of Paris. This work shows in a new light the issues of location of a terminal as well as the counterproductive effects that can have the transport policy yet focused on the promotion of rail services.