The ‘LastMileTram’ is now delivering in Frankfurt – more sustainable parcel transport by tram is being investigated in the Frankfurt UAS research project in cooperation with VGF and Amazon
What contribution can the tram make in a major city like Frankfurt am Main as part of a more sustainable and locally CO2-free parcel delivery service in combination with electric vehicles? This is what the ‘LastMileTram RheinMain V’ research project by Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences (Frankfurt UAS) is investigating in cooperation with Verkehrsgesellschaft Frankfurt am Main (VGF) and Amazon. As part of an initial one-month test run in real operation, the so-called Gütertram, a tram used exclusively for parcel transport, will transport parcels and packages from the outskirts of the city to Frankfurt city centre from 6 September 2024. The aim of the project is to relieve road traffic and reduce noise and CO2 emissions in the city centre.
Pilot project for three-stage transport system: cargo bike, tram and electric van
The idea of using a freight tram as part of the ‘last mile’ delivery process began in theory in 2018. The research project progressed through various iteration stages, most recently with process simulations, to the real-life operation of the LastMileTram, which has now started. The VGF freight tram will transport parcels from Amazon from the ‘Stadion’ stop to the ‘Zoo’ stop and the Gutleut depot. The transport process over the last mile will take place without any CO2 emissions: The parcels and packages are transported from an Amazon distribution centre in Raunheim to the tram station on the outskirts of the city using electric vans; in the city centre, the consignments are delivered to customers’ front doors from the “Zoo” stops and also from the Gutleut depot using electrically powered cargo bikes. The project with the three-stage system of cargo bike, tram and electric van is being funded by the Hessian Ministry of Economics, Energy, Transport, Housing and Rural Areas.
‘With a delivery concept like the ‘LastMileTram’ project in Frankfurt, we can finally test and optimise the knowledge and processes gained in the previous project phases in real operations. Our simulation results to date have shown that the three-stage process can achieve both economic and ecological advantages over conventional single-stage delivery,’ explains project manager and university president Prof Dr Kai-Oliver Schocke from Frankfurt UAS. ‘We hope to be able to establish the concept permanently in Frankfurt in the future and also implement it at other locations in order to significantly relieve road traffic in major cities.’
Analysing the factors for local CO2-free parcel delivery
Even though parcel service providers are working on more sustainable delivery concepts in many places and are driving forward the electrification of their fleets, for the most part, parcels are still delivered using conventional vehicles with combustion engines. Many factors and complex interrelationships need to be taken into account when setting up a locally CO2-free delivery service: In addition to suitable vehicles, a nationwide charging infrastructure and central micro-depots, i.e. small consignment transfer points, are required, which are particularly rare and expensive in city centre locations. Alternative solutions such as parcel transport by rail are therefore of interest. As part of the real-life trial, a holistic view of the operation of the freight tram is being taken. Among other things, this should provide information on how such a delivery concept compares to conventional delivery, taking into account issues such as inflation and CO2 tax. The project will also look at issues such as peaks in consignment volumes and how they can be absorbed in a three-stage system, as well as how transport can be shifted to off-peak times. The project partners are also investigating whether bulky goods can be transported on the VGF tram and are trialling the use of potentially suitable load carriers for bundling consignments. Attention is being paid to ecological sustainability, economic efficiency and the safety of securing the load carriers in the tram. All of these issues are then taken into account in the development of generally applicable recommendations for parcel transport by tram.
About the LastMileTram research project
The ‘LastMileTram’ concept has been researched at the Research Lab for Urban Transport (ReLUT) at Frankfurt UAS since 2018. In the final project phases in 2022 and 2023, the research group simulated the large-scale use of a freight tram for the urban transport of goods at the project site in Frankfurt am Main in order to identify the effects of the delivery process on the urban logistics system.
We reported about Frankfurt’s cargo tram concept here:
https://www.urban-transport-magazine.com/en/frankfurt-vgf-is-testing-a-new-cargo-tram-model/
