New Transportation Modes are Right Under Our Noses

The logistics world advances in tandem with the technology world, such as using drones to deliver small packages and steer vessels. But is there a way we can use transportation modes already set in place to move cargo?  Freight has been moved in the belly of passenger planes for decades, but there are other passenger modes that we are not using. CJ Logistics and the city of Seoul, South Korea, are developing a strategy to take advantage of current subway routes. This will increase efficiency, create new job prospects, and is a positive impact on the environment. Freight will ride the routes to the main stations, and from there the staff waiting on the ground will deliver shipments to their final destinations.

Walmart is experimenting with a similar program in an attempt to keep up with Amazon Prime’s guaranteed two-day shipping. When ordering a product online, it will ship to store and then a Walmart employee will bring the package to customers’ doorsteps on their way home from work. The motivation for the employee is to make some extra cash with their ‘side hustle’, a newly founded industry brought on by Uber and Lyft. The workers have to provide information regarding what days and times they are available, the maximum amount of weight of packages they can carry, provide clear background checks and motor vehicle registrations. Unfortunately, during the testing phase, Walmart did not see a lot of employees willing to volunteer with these constraints.

These new strategies can be tested and improved upon to add to the logistics world we work in today. They provide greener and cost-effective solutions to typical transportation, so it would be no surprise to see in-store employees on your doorstep with a package in the near future.

Contributor: Monica Wamsley

 

References:

http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20170912000726

https://techcrunch.com/2017/06/01/walmart-begins-testing-using-store-staff-for-last-mile-deliveries/

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