EUKN - European Urban Knowledge Network - Freight quality partnership

Freight quality partnership - Utrecht, The Netherlands

Introduction

Following publication of a memorandum on goods transport in the city (Goederenvervoer in Utrecht) and urgent requests from local businesses, Utrecht city council drafted plans for a freight quality partnership to solve the acute problem of congestion in the city centre.

Problem

How can Utrecht improve the flow of goods deliveries in its city centre?

Description

How can Utrecht improve the flow of goods deliveries in its city centre?
With growing pressure from local businesses for an effective freight quality partnership or equivalent scheme, the city council insisted on the collaboration of the business community. The result has been a unique planning and implementation co production shared between the city and its businesses and enshrined in a declaration of intent.

Approach

The project started with the drafting of a profile of the city's freight deliveries, showing which sectors account for what volume of goods traffic. The profile helped create a better picture of the problem and was subsequently useful in determining what the most efficient solution would be.

Results

A number of individual steps had already been taken, including delivery time windows, loading and unloading bays, pedestrian areas, improved traffic management schemes, limits on numbers and types of vehicles, city distribution centres and where possible a switch from road to water - but these had proved unequal to the task.
With growing pressure from local businesses for an effective freight quality partnership or equivalent scheme, the city council insisted on the collaboration of the business community. The result has been a unique planning and implementation co production shared between the city and its businesses and enshrined in a declaration of intent.
A profile of the city's good delivery traffic was drawn up to show which sectors account for what volume of goods traffic. The profile helped create a better picture of the problem and was subsequently useful in identifying the most efficient solution.
Measures which are / have been taken as a consequence are: creation of six new loading and unloading bays; specific road signage for city distribution traffic; and an awareness campaign to convince local businesses to adapt their way of work and thus create more efficient city distribution.

Beneficiaries

Shippers, transporters, shop owners. But also people living in the city centre and visitors, since city distribution has been streamlined and nuisance to the surroundings has been lowered.

Resources used

All financial resources have been supplied by the municipality. Two budgets have been used: a budget designated for improving the inner city accessibility and a budget for inner city management.

The branche organizations of shippers and transporters and the chamber of commerce have contributed in kind, by making personal capacity available for the co production.

Contact info

City of Utrecht
Mark Degenkamp, tel. +31 30 2863747

Project start date

24/09/2002

Links

City of Utrecht Utrecht freight transport policy - choose "beleid" and then "goederenvervoer".Awareness brochure - choose "Verkeersbelemmeringen centrum" to download the brochure.

City of Utrecht Distribution Policy (PDF, Dut, 975 KB)

Document type

case

Themes

Urban Policy > Economy knowledge & employment > Urban economy

Keywords

Specific sectors