Factors Affecting Consumers’ and Carriers’ Acceptance Toward Drone Delivery in Medellin, Colombia

Drones are a promising alternative for logistics and delivery of goods due to its potential benefits in security, privacy, and environmental impact; this has led to policymakers making pilots with them for last-mile delivery. Colombia has yet to test this technology as an emerging economy, though interest has been shown, especially in Medellin, to pilot its implementation. This research explores the factors affecting consumers’ and carriers’ acceptance and preferences toward using drones for last-mile deliveries in Medellin, Colombia. Therefore, the authors proposed two frameworks to model consumers' and carriers’ behaviors, based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), the Theory of Perceived Risk (TPR), the Norm Activation Model (NAM), and the Protection Motivation Theory (PMT). The consumers’ framework is tested building upon 300 respondents selected as potential customers living in Medellin, collected via an online questionnaire, and validating the model using structural equation modeling (SEM) techniques. The carriers’ framework is tested based on in-depth interviews and small surveys with current logistics and delivery companies. The authors will test the effects of perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, problem awareness, and ascribed responsibility (constructs of TAM, TPR, and NAM) on consumers' attitudes and intentions toward using drones to receive deliveries. In addition, the authors will measure the effects of perceived severity, perceived vulnerability (constructs of PMT), and operational factors such as commodity, parcel size, travel time, and distance on the carriers’ acceptance and intention to implement drones for their delivery operations. The contribution of this research is to provide insight on the factors influencing delivery drone acceptance in a main city of an emerging economy, such as Medellin, with an additional focus on the carriers’ perception of drone technology. Altogether to help future policymakers and companies in the successful implementation of this advantageous alternative.