Assistant Professor Quanmeng WANG from the Institute for Advanced Management Studies at Tongji University’s School of Economics and Management has published a new study in Management Science, titled Does the Locker Alliance Network Improve Last Mile Delivery Efficiency? Focusing on the last-mile challenge in urban logistics amid booming e-commerce, the research examines whether parcel lockers—widely viewed as a smart city solution—necessarily improve delivery performance. Using real operational data, optimization methods, and user behavior modeling, the work reveals how locker networks interact with demand patterns to shape delivery routes and overall efficiency, offering new theoretical insights for smart city infrastructure planning.

Contrary to common belief, the study finds that parcel lockers do not always enhance efficiency; poorly located or designed networks can even increase delivery distances. Efficiency gains depend heavily on systematic network design tailored to urban characteristics, such as daily delivery volumes, residential distribution, and locker adoption rates. Higher user penetration concentrates demand and significantly improves performance, while low usage limits benefits, highlighting the critical interplay between network layout and user behavior. The research also identifies a nested structure in optimal networks across logistics firms, suggesting that open, unified locker systems can support diverse operators and improve public infrastructure planning.

The findings carry clear implications for practice. For logistics firms, strategic network design matters more than simply adding lockers. For policymakers, collaborative, inclusive locker infrastructure can boost efficiency while reducing environmental impact. The study underscores that smart city logistics rely not only on infrastructure investment but also on aligning system design with user behavior to unlock the full potential of last-mile delivery solutions.

About Quanmeng WANG

Dr. Quanmeng WANG is an Assistant Professor at the Institute for Advanced Management Studies, Tongji SEM. He earned his Ph.D. in Analytics and Operations from the National University of Singapore. His research focuses on smart city logistics modeling and integer programming applications, with publications in Management Science.