Since the pandemic began, the ordering and delivery of parcels and packages rose considerably. As we were all told to stay at home, the demand for goods, groceries and more to be delivered to doorsteps increased. However, this surge in parcel deliveries has created an unsustainable and inefficient shipping method. Raising concerns around the impact hub-based delivery networks are having on our environment and more.
Hub-based delivery is simply the method by which deliveries are made between a collection of central ‘hubs’.
As an example, when a customer wishes to send a parcel from their base in Manchester to an address in London, they will take the parcel to the post office. From the post office this will then be sent to a centralised hub (e.g. a Royal Mail national hub), here the parcel will be sorted, placed on another van to another hub for local deliveries. Once again it will then be assigned to another driver and placed on yet another van for delivery to the final address. The issues are glaringly obvious once you put it this way…
The problem with this style of delivery is the huge impact it is having and will continue to have on our environment. Most goods are currently moved by diesel and petrol vans which both contribute hugely to our country’s emissions. With a delivery boom in full swing, the UK alone has seen an 82% rise in diesel van sales in the year to March 2021, putting our emissions at risk of increasing rather than decreasing. With the government putting goals in place to achieve net zero within the next decade, we certainly have plenty to do. The hub-based delivery network model requires the movement of one parcel through multiple hubs on multiple vehicles before ever reaching its final destination, which is completely unnecessary and harmful to our environment.
Another major issue with a hub-based delivery network is the difficulty of achieving delivery deadlines. As this is such a lengthy delivery process, with so many steps to be completed before a package arrives at its final destination, deliveries can often be delayed. For both the sender and the receiver this is equally frustrating and disruptive. As demand for courier deliveries continue, this will only become harder and harder for hub-based delivery networks to achieve.
With the demand for fast deliveries, the hub-based delivery network model places huge pressure on drivers. Subsequently leading to the unfair treatment of drivers across each stage of the process. Delivery drivers have reported being made to work through breaks, restricting their restroom breaks and even making dangerous driving decisions to ensure they achieve their delivery deadlines.
With centralised hubs based across the country, senders could find their parcel is directed miles away before every being received by the recipient. This step in the delivery process, particularly for localised deliveries, seems unnecessary and can often lead to lost parcels and packages. Which will be costly for both the delivery company and the sender.
As the logistics industry looks to shift towards making sustainable deliveries, app based delivery platforms are leading the revolution. Providing a way to manage driver deliveries to and from destinations without the need for a hub-based delivery network.
On a mission to revolutionise the logistics industry, at DeliveryApp we are offering a much simpler approach to same day deliveries. Eradicating the need for a delivery hub, customers can connect directly with our courier drivers using our streamlined technology. Whether you choose to download our app or access our website app, we’re putting you in the driving seat. Providing a simple way for you to schedule deliveries with courier drivers from the place you need at the time you need.
On top of this, we are actively rewarding those drivers who use hybrid or electric vehicles to play our part in creating a greener future.
Written by DeliveryApp
