Is a city without logistics possible?

Of course, there is pollution. Naturally, there are traffic congestion problems, and often noise. But is a city without logistics nevertheless possible? What would our country look like if the entire logistics sector came to a halt for even just two weeks? 

There would be widespread shortages of basic foodstuffs and then, in quick succession, businesses would cease operating, one after another, for lack of raw materials or spare parts. “It is crucial to keep in mind this absolute necessity of dealing with logistics-related issues. Because while one can imagine a city without cars, perhaps, deliveries can never be eliminated. Otherwise, what we are designing is a museum city, a city without inhabitants,” insists Jérôme Libeskind, founder of the Logicités consulting firm and an expert in urban logistics. 

But let us follow the logic through nonetheless, if only to be fully convinced, should there be any need, that logistics has a rightful place in our cities: stores would be empty and economic activity would come to a halt—that is a given. Certainly, the few green spaces that brighten urban centers could be turned into vegetable gardens, as in the darkest days of war. But imagining that they could feed everyone is clearly utopian. Without deliveries, a city like Paris would see its food supplies depleted in three days. According to the Paris Urban Planning Agency (Apur), which is currently conducting a study on food resilience in connection with storage capacity and logistics-related food flows in Greater Paris, this figure needs to be clarified: “It is the figure everyone has in mind, but through this study, our work today is to substantiate it,” explains Pauline Chazal, mobility and urban logistics project manager. While it is still too early for Apur to provide a precise answer, it is certain that supplies would be quickly depleted. For good reason: a healthy adult consumes 1.45 kg of food per day. Paris has 2.1 million residents and receives nearly 3.5 million people during the day, while the metropolitan area’s food-dedicated storage capacity was estimated at around one million m2 by Apur in 2022, notes Flora Maytraud, a research officer at Apur.

Residents would also quickly be cut off from the world: at the slightest network failure, there would be no more electricity, since there would be no way to make repairs… Nor would it be possible to buy goods from outside. So, for a city like Paris, goodbye to the roughly 500,000 parcels normally delivered every day. Without logistics, it would also be difficult to provide healthcare. “Logistics is essential in the food sector, as well as for the proper replenishment of numerous medical supplies. I am thinking of masks, blood bags, but also medicines,” recalls Patricia Pelloux, Apur’s deputy director. The same applies to the construction sector: without logistics, there is no equipment or materials, and therefore no worksites. The list could go on, but that would not be the worst of it.  

“We must also think about reverse logistics—everything the city produces in the form of waste, which would no longer be collected or treated,” warns Jérôme Libeskind. According to Ademe, every French person produces an average of 590 kilograms of household waste per year. The amount of waste has doubled in 40 years, the agency notes.  It is hard to imagine even two weeks without trash collection. Last year, sanitation workers once again highlighted their essential role by going on strike for several days. The economic impact would also be devastating: with logistics accounting for 3 million freight movements a year, including 1 million in Paris alone, many jobs would disappear in a sector that employs 2.1 million people in France (logistics is France’s fifth-largest recruiter). Not to mention indirect job losses in sectors such as construction and food service… But how can we avoid getting to that point while finally integrating logistics harmoniously into our cities? 

“We have seen a sharp decline in logistics efficiency over the past 20 years, due to the metropolitan expansion of our cities, which continue to sprawl across their territory—10, 20, 30, even 40 kilometers, as is the case in Montpellier, for example. This generates poorly optimized flows, additional miles, and therefore lower overall efficiency. Logistics requirements should be much better taken into account in the very design of urban living environments. While we do think about quality of life, we too often lose interest in supply-related issues,” insists Jérôme Libeskind, who is also the author of the book Si la logistique m’était contée, published by Éditions FYP. The key lies in the much-discussed last mile. And there are a thousand ways to make it more efficient, more sustainable, and more acceptable to residents. A thousand, because every case is different, depending on the conditions specific to each city. But everything must be examined through the following three-part framework: “Determine what can be avoided, what can be done differently and, finally, what can be improved,” the expert summarizes. 

This may mean developing cargo-bike logistics, seeking to prioritize inland waterway and rail transport whenever possible, but also continually improving delivery-route optimization (address reliability, ensuring the customer is at home, in order to avoid unnecessary miles spent returning parcels, etc.), or ensuring that items are not overpackaged because, as Jérôme Libeskind points out, “we still transport far too much empty space today.”