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Freight network planning and the application of distribution innovations are popular fields of research on sustainable urban logistics. However, considerable research on freight network design lacks a comprehensive consideration of the application of distribution innovations. This observation implies that sustainable urban freight research appears highly fragmented in topics of network design and distribution innovations. From the perspective of long-term planning, this situation possibly serves as a barrier to further promotion of sustainability. The objective of this paper is to analyze existing research gaps of literature to further promote the sustainability of urban logistics systems from a future perspective.

This paper employs a systematic literature review (SLR) method, which covers 164 papers and research works published in 2013–2018. The article corpus involved the innovative schemes of freight network design and the emerging delivery concepts in cities. Based on an analysis of articles' relevance, the most significant research contributions on both city logistics network design and exploitation of distribution innovations are detected.

This paper has found four research gaps in aspects of network design and distribution innovations. To respond to these gaps, we propose the research framework of sustainable and flexible future urban freight planning (SFFUFP) based on trends of city development, while discussing further research direction on urban freight planning.

The authors have found four research gaps in aspects of both urban freight network design and distribution innovations in which scholars could be encouraged to contribute. The research framework of SFFUFP can further promote sustainable urban logistics from a view of future management.

The determinants of income of rural and urban farm households, with emphasis on the role of off-farm employment by farm household members and of farm size, are examined using data from the 2016 Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS) and quantile regression procedure. The implemented quantile regression technique is extended to allow for the decomposition of the income gap between the two groups of farm households. Findings indicate, regardless of the location of the farm, a positive and significant impact of a previous year's participation in off-farm work by household members on the distribution of current household income. Having operated a larger-sized farm in the previous year is shown with a similar effect in the upper range of the income distribution for urban households and with a comparable impact but across the whole income distribution for rural farm households.

Data from the 2016 ARMS are used in conjunction with quantile regression in order for decomposition of the income gap between the two groups of farm households.

Findings show that urban farm households who in a previous year have participated in off-farm work and operated larger-sized farms tend to earn higher incomes. Results further indicate higher rates of return to education for “urban” farm households in comparison to “rural” farm households, particularly for those with a college education and beyond who are at the lower portion of the income distribution.

To the extent that the ARMS is an annual cross-sectional data, the temporal impacts of factors that potentially may influence the incomes of farm households in urban and rural areas cannot be measured.

Findings from this research indirectly support previous published research where higher earnings by urban US population were documented in comparison to rural population and where earnings tend to rise as a result of participation in off-farm work and in expanding the size of the farming operation; this is in addition to the procurement of higher education.

The results of a higher rate of return to education for “urban” farm households in comparison to “rural” farm households have important policy implications for policymakers.

This is the first paper in the agricultural economic literature that implements a method of assessing the rural–urban divide across all of the quantiles of income distribution.

Under the background of the rapid development of e-commerce and information network, the demand for urban distribution is also changing; especially customers' demand for fast delivery of products is increasing. Based on this, the optimization of urban traffic distribution path was studied under the fast response demand. In this paper, the importance and theoretical basis of the design of urban traffic planning under rapid response demand were expounded; then, the urban traffic distribution path planning was designed, and the layout principle of urban traffic roads, the division of road levels and the planning and design of motor vehicle roads were analyzed; through the planning project of the traffic distribution path in a city, analysis of the planning on roadways, three-dimensional traffic paths was achieved.

This study aims to explore the pattern of urban residents’ socio-spatial distribution in a small-sized city where the local housing market capacity and variety is limited.

Spatial variation was reflected by two different analysis. First, factor analysis was applied to determine the major dimensions of the social, economic and housing environment in the investigation area. Second, Kriging maps, which depict the socio-spatial distribution pattern of the households according to major dimensions, were produced by interpolating factor scores on a continuous surface. Those were supported by complementary exploratory analysis to deepen the discussion.

Homogenous distribution of similar groups to housing areas and low inner differentiation particularly within lower income neighborhoods are the noticeable results of the analysis set. Ethnicity and income differentiation are the principal determinants of socio-spatial distribution pattern in our case. The constraints of the local housing market are seemed to facilitate spatial separation. Disadvantaged population groups are limited to small niches within the urban fabric; they are relegated to poor quality neighborhoods or to unpopular inner-city housing estates.

This research has been performed for the small size city in Turkey and may not hold for other areas, even though the methodology can be replicated and the mechanisms at play are quite similar elsewhere.

The internal differentiation of urban residents’ is worth investigation to develop consistent housing and planning policies to overcome prospective social exclusion problems. This study has a potential of remarking the importance of policy-based economic and housing development in smaller cities in Turkey.

Analyses displayed a sectoral structure of the distribution of urban residents but lower inner differentiation within neighborhoods. Limitations of the housing stock facilitate substantial level of isolation to the extent of ethnicity. Two different ethnic groups are confined to small niches, and they are ethnically and economically tied down to their neighborhoods. The physical properties and the quality of both dwellings and the housing environment are the poorest in these areas, and these are unpopular housing areas by the majority of the population. These findings are supposed to give direction of setting consistent housing policies in the case area.

This research is one of the initial research on socio-spatial distribution of urban residents to housing areas in Turkey. It is also one of the rare examples of socio-spatial differentiation study in small-sized city in the literature. The authors have shown that socio-spatial differentiation would be severe even in small size housing markets as opposed to expectation.

Due to the growing percentage share of urban dwellers, the physical distribution of products faces altering conditions. This research explores the effects that urbanization has on the performance of a fast-moving consumer goods distribution network. A focus is set on changes in distribution cost, the cost-minimal network design, and greenhouse gas emissions.

The analyses are based on a quantitative distribution network model of an existing manufacturer of consumer goods.

The results indicate that the foreseen population shift will affect the network's economic and environmental performance. Effects are, among others, due to differences in the efficiency of supplying urban and nonurban regions. The combined effects of urbanization and the development of the population size will even more affect the network's performance.

Research dealing with distribution logistics and urbanization primarily focuses on city logistics. In this paper, the object of analysis is the entire distribution system.

The purpose of this chapter is first to establish a state of the art about cargo tram, in order to understand its opportunities and constraints. In a second step, the aim is to add an often overlooked spatial dimension in the analysis, which may offer a renewed insight into the issue and extend the understanding of the potential use of urban light rail for freight.

The first step of the analysis is carried out through a study of the literature. In particular, the potential use of cargo tram for the various urban supply chains is evaluated. The aim is to establish a European state of the art on urban light rail use for freight. Then, to concretise these elements and to add an empirical geographical approach, the Brussels situation is studied in detail.

This combination of a theoretical analysis and a field approach of the case of Brussels allows us to lead an original study. Obstacles, opportunities and interest for the implementation of cargo trams are specified. In addition, the use of geographical approach gives a new point of view since most of the publications in this field are based on economic or technical approaches.

This study may help public and private actors involved in urban freight matters, as well as public transport companies, to better understand the issues related to cargo trams. In a context where this transport mode is promoted and discussed in a growing number of cities and urban supply chains, it is useful to get an objective synthesis and a prospective analysis on this topic. This research may also have social implications in the way it helps to define a more sustainable urban logistics.

The originality of this research is related to the combination of a theoretical and empirical approach, to the link that is made between urban supply chains and capabilities of cargo trams and finally to the prospective study on the Brussels case. Indeed, because of the novelty of the topic, there are very few studies, either ex-post or ex-ante.

The purpose of this paper is to present a mobile application supported townshipand urban e-grocery distribution models that uses a software application (app) to bridge the infrastructural barriers, costs and complexities associated with e-grocery delivery operations in rural township areas.

Using a qualitative multi-case approach and semi-structured interviews, the study explored distribution practices of eight national emerging e-grocery retail businesses to demonstrate how mobile applications can facilitate South African urban and township e-grocery delivery models.

The study reveals how the need to scale the use of new mobile application innovations fuels value-added services that power new e-grocery distribution models. Of interest is how the application aggregates demand rapidly, respond to demand within a short lead time and how e-grocers use competitors’ stores as their fulfilment centres. The use of apps reveals a slow transformation of society towards an inclusive model that integrates different types of workers in an informal context.

The mobile application value-added service business model offers a new wave of scaling e-grocery retail to rural and township areas constrained by technological, economic and road infrastructure. The apps transcend e-grocery barriers and enables small businesses with limited resources to leverage e-grocery market opportunities that are unimaginable in townships and rural areas.

The innovative mobile platform-base model offers emerging contextual insight of a pull e-grocery distribution model that demonstrates the supply chain innovations for addressing under-resource and under-developed logistics infrastructure.