InPost: the choice to reduce car traffic

Did you know that it is estimated that, if measures are not taken to prevent it, carbon dioxide emissions due to parcel delivery vehicles will increase by 32% by 2030, and traffic by 21%?

This is a consequence of the growth of e-commerce, which is causing major transformations in the world. The environmental impact generated has been the subject of various studies and is now an urgent concern. The volume of car traffic that is produced affects our societies, our environment and the sustainability of our economy. Some of the key concerns are carbon dioxide emissions and their consequences for air quality, as well as energy consumption and congestion.

Many cities have sought ways to deal with the problems caused and with the growing demands on infrastructure. For example, the city of London has already considered the possibility of banning personal parcel deliveries at workplaces. A recent report prepared for this same city recommends that, in the future, a parcel collection point system should be used precisely, given its demonstrable environmental advantages. In New York, as far back as 2010, a “out-of-hours” delivery program was being tested, under which deliveries were made from 18:00 to 06:00, also with good results in reducing traffic. The reality, in short, is that the need for responses to the crisis is felt strongly everywhere.

Surely, you would like to be part of the solution and to know how to contribute positively to a better future. Keep reading this article to find out how you can help combat these urgent problems through your choices when receiving, sending or returning a parcel.

What to do?

With InPost, you are choosing a way to combat the skyrocketing increase in traffic generated by parcel delivery, which is at the same time practical and convenient. At InPost, we specialize in non-home deliveries, focusing on optimizing the transport process as much as possible. Door-to-door delivery, involving more intensive use of transport, is the most environmentally burdensome option. With us, your parcels are delivered to a Ponto Pack or a Locker – which are usually conventional retail establishments, such as newsagents or florists. You can then collect the parcel whenever it is most convenient for you, with 8 days and a broad time window available to do so.

Distributors can, in this way, deliver several parcels at the same time to a single Ponto Pack, making use of well-planned routes. The high number of failed deliveries is also drastically reduced. All of this provides greater delivery flexibility, lowers transport costs and reduces the volume of car traffic generated.

The results

The advantages of this alternative are decisive: a study carried out in the Spanish city of Zaragoza concludes that it represents a potential reduction in carbon dioxide emissions of 64% to 86% per parcel. A huge difference. In concrete numbers, home delivery represents an average of 229g of CO2e, while the non-home model corresponds to 83g. The reduction reaches its maximum potential when the parcel is then collected on foot, for which the proximity of the Ponto Pack or Locker is the key factor.

This confirms previous studies carried out in Poland, a country where, due to the density of the Locker network and the optimization of the logistics process, the reduction can already reach 96%.

Join us

By choosing InPost, you are making a conscious choice for the environment. We believe that taking responsibility for the challenge of protecting the planet and natural resources must be a priority for all of us. You are also choosing the principles of efficiency and simplicity.

We believe this is the future of parcel transport. Focusing on an optimized delivery process offers a real solution. This approach also comes with many advantages for you. Find out more about these advantages in this blog and on our website, and join us in the vision of a more sustainable tomorrow.