Individually Optimized Commercial Road Transport: A Decision Support System for Customizable Routing Problems

authored by

Max Leyerer, Marc Oliver Sonneberg, Maximilian Heumann, Tim Kammann, Michael H. Breitner

Abstract

The Vehicle Routing Problem (VRP) in its manifold variants is widely discussed in scientific literature. We investigate related optimization models and solution methods to determine the state of research for vehicle routing attributes and their combinations. Most of these approaches are idealized and focus on single problem-tailored routing applications. Addressing this research gap, we present a customizable VRP for optimized road transportation embedded into a Decision Support System (DSS). It integrates various model attributes and handles a multitude of real-world routing problems. In the context of urban logistics, practitioners of different industries and researchers are assisted in efficient route planning that allows for minimizing driving distances and reducing vehicle emissions. Based on the design science research methodology, we evaluate the DSS with computational benchmarks and real-world simulations. Results indicate that our developed DSS can compete with problem-tailored algorithms. With our solution-oriented DSS as final artifact, we contribute to an enhanced economic and environmental sustainability in urban logistic applications.

Organisation(s)

Faculty of Economics and Management

Type

Article

Journal

Sustainability (Switzerland)

Volume

11

ISSN

2071-1050

Publication date

02.10.2019

Publication status

Published

Peer reviewed

Yes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Geography, Planning and Development, Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment, Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law

Sustainable Development Goals

SDG 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy, SDG 11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities

Electronic version(s)

https://doi.org/10.3390/su11205544 (Access: Open)
https://doi.org/10.15488/8799 (Access: Open)