(This is an archived page)
Planning for Urban Freight: Putting it Into Practice
Research Team
Noreen McDonald, PhD., UNC Chapel Hill
Charles H.W. Edwards, MSc, MBA, UNC Chapel Hill
Evan Iacobucci, Ph.D., UNC Chapel Hill
Emma Vinella-Brusher, MPA, UNC Chapel Hill
Final Report (Archive)
What did this project accomplish? This project applied the results of previous STRIDE research on planning for urban freight by disseminating these results to professional planners and stakeholders, giving them tools to incorporate freight concerns in economic development, transportation, and land use planning. Through a summary infographic, listening session with local North Carolina planners, and listserv email communication, this project shared findings from previous urban freight research and worked with stakeholders to identify opportunities to apply these findings to on-the-ground challenges. Previous STRIDE research found that freight-related injuries and crashes are rising, particularly on local urban roads and arterials during weekday peak delivery hours. Existing loading zones in urban areas provide insufficient space, leading to substantial parking challenges for delivery drivers and demonstrating the need for policy and infrastructure solutions. The researchers found that local North Carolina planners are experiencing many of these same challenges in their own communities, particularly surrounding limited space in compact urban cores, competition for the curb, illegal parking, and warehousing siting and distribution. This project helped to identify strategies for local governments to align planning practice with goods movement trends, and increased information sharing across the region about how these issues are unfolding locally.