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IPOD Abstract for presentation (Poster or Podium)

Freight & Logistics

1619188 - Measuring the Impacts of Warehouse Development in Cities. A Social Sustainability Approach

Tuesday, June 18, 2024
9:10 AM - 9:30 AM ET
Room: 216
Abstract:


Freight movement in urban areas is a critical factor in the sustainable development of cities. If managed correctly, it can potentiate economic growth and support urban lifestyles. Nevertheless, the movement of goods in cities usually conflicts with other urban flows and is generally perceived as having more negative externalities for environmental and social sustainability. Furthermore, new results show that the development of logistics infrastructure in cities is growing, intending to meet the expectations of increasingly fast demand. This study investigates the impact of the logistics facility’s proximity to urban areas from a social sustainability approach, measuring the social vulnerability in warehouse permitting areas, analyzing the quality of jobs on a ten-year basis, and measuring the job creation in surrounding areas.




The primary data input for this analysis is Census Data, Quarterly Workforce Indicators, and Industry Job Trends, all provided by the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Labor Statistics. All these indicators were gathered around New York City, one of the densest areas in the United States. After obtaining the data, we developed the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) calculation method, which considers several socioeconomic variables and then translates them into an index that can be measured at the Census Tract Level. To analyze the job quality, we observed the ten-year trends analysis and observed job characteristics for gender, education level, age, and minority characteristics. Finally, we observed the city’s four-year trends for transportation and warehousing jobs and gathered some significant results.




Initial results from this study show that warehouses are generally in more vulnerable city areas. However, there are new logistics facility trends - i.e., dark stores - that place their distribution centers in less vulnerable areas in their quest to be closer to consumers. These also tend to escape land-use regulations due to the organization of their operations. Furthermore, workforce indicators show an essential rise in the number of jobs in most industries related to the movement of goods but a not-so-important increase in year-over-year earnings. Finally, although logistics facilities provide jobs for the surrounding communities, it seems that the overall number of jobs in these areas has not increased significantly in the last four years.




Results from this study are expected to inform future planning for delivery activity at citywide and neighborhood levels and to raise awareness of the social impact that logistics facilities have in the surrounding communities.























Learning Objectives:

Attendees can expect to learn the following from this session:
  • Identify a new approach to measuring social vulnerability existing in urban areas that considers both demographic and environmental variables.
  • Identify new warehouse trends in urban areas and measure the impact these have on city planning.
  • describe job transportation job trends in and near warehouse areas in urban areas.