Credit: Photo by Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko (https://www.pexels.com/photo/parcels-inside-a-delivery-van-6170458/)
by Daniela Paddeu, Associate Professor of Sustainable Freight Futures
The UK transport sector faces an urgent need for decarbonisation, with freight transport contributing approximately one-third of its emissions. Urban areas, in particular, experience the highest environmental impact from last-mile deliveries, exacerbated by the exponential growth of e-commerce and the increasing consumer demand for quick deliveries. The UK Transport Decarbonisation Plan sets ambitious national targets, but it lacks a clear, actionable strategy to enable local authorities to address these emissions effectively. This disconnect between national ambitions and local implementation creates a significant governance gap, limiting the ability of local authorities to deliver targeted, place-based solutions.
I have summarised the key insights from a very recently published paper titled: Decarbonising last-mile deliveries: When the national strategy fails to meet local needs and expectations. The paper presents the results of a project that explored local governments’ perspectives and expertise on freight policy and planning. Here’s what I learned.
Why is it so challenging to decarbonise last-mile deliveries?
Despite the increasing urgency to reduce emissions from last-mile deliveries, the sector remains difficult to decarbonise due to a combination of operational inefficiencies, policy misalignment, and resistance to behavioural change.
Source: Department for Transport. Available at: Road traffic statistics – Summary statistics – the figure shows the data related to Light Commercial Vehicles’ annual traffic.
The research I undertook identifies multiple systemic barriers that represent a challenge to progress:
- Limited capacity and expertise within local authorities. Freight transport has historically been overlooked in urban transport planning, which prioritises passenger mobility. As a result, local policymakers lack the technical knowledge and resources to develop comprehensive freight strategies.
- Urban vs Rural divide. Solutions such as e-cargo bikes may be effective in cities but are impractical in rural areas where delivery demand is dispersed, and infrastructure is inadequate.
- Financial viability of sustainable freight solutions. The transition to clean vehicles and consolidation centres requires significant investment, which is often beyond the financial capacity of local governments and smaller logistics operators.
- Stakeholder fragmentation and lack of collaboration. The complexity of last-mile logistics involves multiple actors, including retailers, logistics firms, local governments, and consumers, each with competing interests and priorities.
- Consumer expectations and behavioural inertia. The widespread availability of same-day and next-day delivery options encourages inefficient logistics practices, increasing emissions and congestion while making it difficult to consolidate deliveries.
National strategy vs Local reality: a governance failure
The UK government’s Transport Decarbonisation Plan fails to provide a comprehensive approach to last-mile deliveries, focusing instead on long-distance freight and passenger transport decarbonisation. This leaves local authorities in a policy vacuum, where they are expected to implement solutions without the necessary legislative support, financial backing, or technical guidance. While the plan acknowledges freight transport as a key contributor to emissions, it remains vague in defining roles and responsibilities across governance levels, leading to ambiguity and inaction at the local level.
When national strategy ignores local realities, governance fails
Furthermore, national policies do not adequately address the interplay between transport planning and consumer behaviour. While passenger mobility policies incorporate behaviour change strategies, there is little to no effort to shift consumer habits related to online shopping and delivery choices. This is a significant shortcoming, as reducing unnecessary deliveries and promoting more sustainable delivery behaviours would have a tangible impact on emissions reduction. My research argues that without intervention at the consumer level, national strategies will remain ineffective in tackling last-mile delivery emissions.
A critical perspective: the need for policy reform
Without decisive policy reform, last-mile decarbonisation will remain an ambition, not a reality
While the research presented in my latest paper offers a comprehensive roadmap for decarbonising last-mile deliveries, its success hinges on a fundamental restructuring of governance mechanisms. Without stronger national support, local authorities remain constrained in their ability to implement meaningful change. The following gaps highlight the need for urgent action:
- Lack of local authority autonomy. The UK’s centralised governance structure leaves local councils with insufficient regulatory power to introduce road pricing, consolidation centres, or mandatory clean delivery zones.
- Political and economic barriers. The financial weight of decarbonisation falls disproportionately on local governments and small businesses, while larger logistics firms continue to dominate the market with minimal regulatory constraints.
- Failure to address market incentives. Consumer behaviour is largely dictated by retailer policies. If online giants such as Amazon and similar online platforms continue to subsidise free and rapid deliveries, local policy measures will struggle to counteract these incentives.
- Urban bias in policy proposals. While urban-focused solutions like e-cargo bikes and consolidation centres receive significant attention, it is important to understand how appropriate solutions would address the need of access to goods in rural areas. The feasibility of rural-specific interventions, such as micro-hubs or mobile logistics units, requires further exploration.
A call for coordinated action
In sum, I wanted to share with you my critique of the UK’s current approach to transport decarbonisation, particularly in relation to last-mile deliveries. My latest paper on this topic highlights the urgent need for integrated, multi-level governance, stronger stakeholder collaboration, and more proactive policy interventions to address consumer behaviour and industry practices. An effective design and implementation of appropriate policies and plans to decarbonise last-mile deliveries requires significant political will, regulatory reform, and financial investment.
So, what?
My final takeaway is clear: if the UK really aims to align last-mile deliveries with its net-zero ambitions, it must prioritise:
- Empowering local authorities with regulatory tools and financial support.
- Mandating sustainable freight practices such as compulsory consolidation and green delivery zones.
- Engaging consumers in the transition through pricing mechanisms and awareness campaigns.
- Enforcing corporate accountability by compelling major retailers to integrate sustainable logistics into their business models.
Without a radical shift in governance structures and policy priorities, the national net-zero agenda will fail to deliver meaningful change in last-mile logistics. The transition to sustainable local freight must be accelerated, with national and local authorities working together to transform last-mile deliveries to align with environmental, economic, and social sustainability objectives.
If you want to know more about my research, you can read my latest publication on this topic: Decarbonising last-mile deliveries: When the national strategy fails to meet local needs and expectations. Also, feel free to get in touch directly by email.
This blog was written by Dr Daniela Paddeu, Associate Professor of Sustainable Freight Futures at the Centre for Transport and Society, University of the West of England, Bristol.
Dr Daniela Paddeu is a leading researcher in sustainable urban freight and transport decarbonisation. Her work focuses on integrating freight into urban mobility planning, stakeholder engagement, and governance challenges in last-mile logistics. She has conducted extensive research on local authorities’ role in freight policy, highlighting governance gaps and the need for co-designed, place-based solutions. Through her projects, including studies on freight decarbonisation in the UK, she advocates for stronger policy alignment between national ambitions and local implementation strategies. You can contact her at: daniela.paddeu@uwe.ac.uk ¦ Linkedin: Daniela Paddeu.