The collection and delivery points (CDP) are an alternative to home deliveries and an important opportunity to reduce failed deliveries within urban areas. In this study, we propose to analyze the accessibility from CDPs located in commercial establishments (drugstores, gas stations, post offices, supermarkets, and malls) considered most attractive by e-consumers to receive this delivery solution. The methodological approach uses spatial analysis to identify the coverage area of the CDPs considering socioeconomic data and e-consumer preferences. Also, spatial tools to analyze the accessibility of CDPs were used, considering the transport infrastructure, the population location, and job opportunities location through different transport modes. The results indicated differences in levels of accessibility between the CDPs, highlighting the important associations among economic activities, land use patterns, and transport to plan for sustainable cities. The use of cluster analysis methods as a methodological approach is one contribution and can be replicated to support decision-making in other cities.

Many negative externalities are associated with home deliveries, the main ecommerce delivery destination. Despite many solutions that address this problem, the lack of understanding of the spatial pattern of urban deliveries makes it challenging to implement these strategies. This paper analyzed the spatial relationship between sociodemographic, retail and e-commerce deliveries in Belo Horizonte (Brazil) by using official data at the neighborhood level (number of retail shops, gender, income, age, race, and household size), and e-commerce deliveries performed by a transportation company. Global Moran's I indicated the spatial dependence of the e-commerce deliveries. Results of a geographically weighted regression model showed a positive spatial effect of retail, women, Asian population, age from 20 to 29 years old, and income. In addition, a negative spatial effect was identified for the size of the household, 18 to 19 years old, and the black population. Furthermore, the estimated coefficients show small spatial variability, indicating homogeneity in the spatial relation. The uniformity of the parameters indicates that alternative strategies can be implemented throughout the territory to reduce e-commerce deliveries.

The concentration of warehouses in peripheral regions of metropolitan areas in a time period is called logistics sprawl (LS). Identifying this phenomenon could help to reduce externalities related to urban freight transport, mainly, the distance traveled. This paper examines the contribution of the characteristics of metropolitan areas on the logistics sprawl indicator. A case study was carried out considering data from eight metropolitan areas of the state of Paraná (Brazil). The research method is based on the data collection procedure proposed, centrographic method, and linear regression. The results of the centrographic method reveal a positive LS in four metropolitan areas and a negative LS in three metropolitan areas. In general, the warehouses are close to the highways that cross the metropolitan area. In addition, the size of the metropolitan area has a negative relationship with the number of warehouses and the logistics sprawl indicator. The findings highlight the importance of public policies relating to urban freight transport and land use at a metropolitan level.

O espraiamento logístico é um fenômeno caracterizado pela concentração de centros de distribuição logística em regiões periféricas em detrimento de áreas centrais. Esse fenômeno ocorre pela maior acessibilidade e disponibilidade de terras para instalação de armazéns em regiões mais afastadas dos centros das cidades com um menor custo. O objetivo deste trabalho é identificar e mensurar a ocorrência de espraiamento logístico na Região Metropolitana do Recife (RMR). Usando dados públicos, identificou-se 502 empresas instaladas na RMR no período entre 1960 e 2020. Por meio de análise centrográfica, foi identificado que os armazéns se situam a 13,14 km do centro geográfico da Região Metropolitana do Recife na década de 2020 e que houve um aumento de 1,88 km no espraiamento logístico, com os armazéns se instalando principalmente no eixo sul da região, paralelo à costa. Dessa forma, observa-se o impacto do Porto de Suape na atração de armazéns. Ainda, o nível de espraiamento identificado na RMR é compatível com outras regiões metropolitanas brasileiras e não configura um impacto expressivo para as operações de distribuição urbana de cargas na região em estudo.