Ports and Networks: Strategies, Operations and Perspectives

Citation: Harry Geerlings, Bart Kuipers, Rob Zuidwijk (Eds.) (2018). Ports and Networks: Strategies, Operations and Perspectives, Routledge.

Link https://www.routledge.com/Ports-and-Networks-Strategies-Operations-and-Perspectives/Geerlings-Kuipers-Zuidwijk/p/book/9781472485038

Planning of truck platoons: A literature review and directions for future research

Citation Anirudh Kishore Bhoopalam, Niels Agatz, Rob Zuidwijk (2017). Planning of truck platoons: A literature review and directions for future research. Transportation Research Part B. Published online November 10, 2017.

Link https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trb.2017.10.016

Abstract A truck platoon is a set of virtually linked trucks that drive closely behind one another using automated driving technology. Benefits of truck platooning include cost savings, reduced emissions, and more efficient use of road capacity. To fully reap these benefits in the initial phases of technology deployment, careful planning of platoons based on trucks’ itineraries and time schedules is required. This paper provides a framework to classify various new transportation planning problems that arise in truck platooning, surveys relevant operations research models for these problems in the literature and identifies directions for future research.

Crowdsourced Delivery — A Dynamic Pickup and Delivery Problem with Ad-Hoc Drivers

Citation Alp Arslan, Niels Agatz, Leo Kroon, Rob Zuidwijk (2019). Crowdsourced Delivery — A Dynamic Pickup and Delivery Problem with Ad-Hoc Drivers. Transportation Science 53(1): 222-235.

Link https://doi.org/10.1287/trsc.2017.0803

Abstract The trend toward shorter delivery lead times reduces operational efficiency and increases transportation costs for Internet retailers. However, mobile technology creates new opportunities to organize the last mile. In this paper, we study the concept of crowdsourced delivery that aims to use excess capacity on journeys that already take place. We consider a service platform that automatically creates matches between parcel delivery tasks and ad hoc drivers. The platform also operates a fleet of dedicated vehicles to serve the tasks that cannot be served by the ad hoc drivers. The matching of tasks, drivers, and dedicated vehicles in real time gives rise to a new variant of the dynamic pickup and delivery problem. We propose a rolling horizon framework and develop an exact solution approach to solve the matching problem each time new information becomes available. To investigate the potential benefit of crowdsourced delivery, we conduct a wide range of computational experiments. The experiments provide insights into the viability of crowdsourced delivery under various assumptions about the behavior of the ad hoc drivers. The results suggest that the use of ad hoc drivers has the potential to make the last mile more cost-efficient and can provide system-wide vehicle-mile savings up to 37% compared to a traditional delivery system with dedicated vehicles.