THE IMPACTS OF THE PANDEMIC ON URBAN FREIGHT DELIVERIES: A CASE STUDY IN A BRAZILIAN CARRIER.

The COVID-19 pandemic led to changes in shopping behaviour, resulting in higher than expected growth in e-commerce. All this influenced the expansion of freight transport in urban areas and had a significant impact on last-mile deliveries by carriers, whose demand increased significantly. The objective of this study was to analyse last-mile deliveries during the COVID-19 pandemic from the perspective of e-commerce freight carriers. This was done using a hybrid simulation model, i.e. discrete event simulation (DES) and agent-based simulation (ABS). An increase in the number of deliveries increased the number of kilometres travelled, fuel costs, CO2 emissions, number of trips and vehicle utilisation. Comparative scenarios with delivery lockers are simulated, demonstrating improved operation for all simulated variables. The results of this study can be used to better plan e-commerce delivery operations during future pandemic events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]