User:Annieblakslee

Cities are built like a quilt. Specific roads sew together blocks of buildings. Some streets allow connections across town, while others are meant for very localized traffic. The fabrics of a city are pulled together by the infrastructure of roads and the ability of transportation from one play to the next with the utmost ease, functionality and convenience. Cities were not built for thousands of trucks to be delivering up to 1.5 million personal packages per day. This case study looks into New York City, and its consumer’s demand for doorstep delivery.

Cities are equipped with warehouses that exist just beyond their downtown district, filled with shipments that need to be transported to doorsteps throughout the city. Moving freight that final mile within cities may be one of the “biggest forgotten problems” that is facing modern cities. This is where the problem arises; reaching the doorsteps of millions with limited access for excess packages.

The functionality of streets is challenged to keep up with delivery demand. Shoppers can purchase their goods within seconds now that their credit card and shipping information is auto-filled into the necessary spaces. Ramifications of online ordering and door-delivery are seen throughout urban streets that are now filled with even more delivery trucks.

These delivery trucks not only perpetuate urban traffic but create parking dilemmas as there are not enough loading zones to meet the demand. Drivers, bikers, and local residents face the consequences when parking spaces are taken and street-side bike lanes are blocked by idling trucks. Additionally, the increasing density of trucks negatively contribute to greenhouse gas emissions.

Delivery and online companies are not the only contributing players in this game. The ones who drive delivery demand are consumers. With the increased population of Amazon Prime members specifically, online shopping becomes cheaper than actually going to the store. There is an estimated 90 million Amazon Prime subscribers in the United States. Their website offers everything from cleansing products, to home goods, to fashion, to pantry-stocking foods. They offer free shipping of over 100 million items. This means that all 90 million subscribers qualify for free shipping on all of their Prime needs.

Amazon is now working towards one-day delivery, as opposed to two-day delivery for its Prime members. What does that mean for the perpetual traffic issues that ride along with big delivery trucks throughout the fabrics of the city?