PROSFET · Project

Decision Support Software for Smarter Urban Freight Delivery Planning

transportIdeaTRL 2Thin data (2/5)

Imagine every delivery van, truck, and courier fighting for space on the same crowded city streets — each company wants the cheapest route, while the city wants less pollution and fewer traffic jams. Those goals often clash, and nobody has a good way to balance them. PROSFET brought together researchers and software companies across five countries to figure out how cities and logistics companies can plan freight transport together, and started designing a computer tool to help them make better decisions.

By the numbers

consortium partners across research and industry

European countries involved (EL, ES, IT, SE, UK)

total project deliverables produced

EUR 283,500

EU contribution for the research program

industry partners including software houses

The business problem

What needed solving

Cities across Europe are drowning in delivery traffic, but freight companies and city governments have opposite priorities — companies want fast, cheap deliveries while cities want less congestion and pollution. There is no standardized way to balance these competing demands, leaving most cities with fragmented, ad-hoc freight policies that frustrate everyone.

The solution

What was built

PROSFET produced 15 deliverables including research on urban freight planning needs across multiple countries, methods for structured multi-party decision-making in city logistics, and the conceptual design for a decision support software tool. The project also disseminated findings through sponsored conference panels at major logistics and transportation academic events.

Audience

Who needs this

Last-mile delivery companies operating in congested European citiesMunicipal transport planning departmentsUrban logistics consultancies advising city governmentsTransport software companies building smart city toolsIndustry associations representing urban freight operators

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Urban Logistics & Last-Mile Delivery

any

Target: Last-mile delivery and courier companies operating in congested cities

If you are a delivery company dealing with rising costs from urban congestion and inconsistent city freight regulations — this project mapped out the planning needs of local authorities across 5 European countries and developed the concept for a decision support tool that balances delivery efficiency against city-level environmental and traffic goals. The methods could help you align your route planning with municipal policies before they become mandatory.

Municipal Transport Planning

enterprise

Target: City transport departments and urban planning consultancies

If you are a city transport department struggling with fragmented freight policies and conflicting demands from residents vs. logistics operators — this project identified the prerequisites for including all parties in urban freight planning and produced methods and models for structured decision-making. The research draws on expertise from 10 partners including software houses to translate academic models into practical planning tools.

Transport Software Development

SME

Target: Software companies building logistics optimization or smart city platforms

If you are a transport software company looking to expand into urban freight planning tools — this project produced the conceptual design for a decision support tool built with input from 2 industry partners including software houses. The research outputs on multi-objective freight planning could serve as the functional specification for a commercial product targeting city authorities and logistics operators.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

How much would it cost to access or license the decision support tool?

PROSFET developed the conceptual design for a decision support tool, not a finished commercial product. The tool concept was created through collaboration with software houses in the consortium. Any licensing or development costs would need to be negotiated with the University of Sheffield or the involved software partners.

Is this ready to deploy at industrial scale?

No. The project focused on knowledge transfer and conceptual development under an MSCA-RISE staff exchange program with a total EU contribution of EUR 283,500 across 10 partners. The decision support tool remains at a conceptual stage and would require significant further development before deployment.

What is the IP situation — who owns the results?

IP from MSCA-RISE projects typically belongs to the institutions that generated the results. With 10 partners across 5 countries including 2 industry partners, IP arrangements would need to be clarified with the consortium, led by the University of Sheffield.

Does this comply with current EU urban freight regulations?

The project specifically studied how freight transport is handled in local authority planning across multiple countries. Its methods and recommendations were designed to align with European urban mobility policy. However, specific regulatory compliance would depend on how the outputs are implemented in each city context.

How long before this could be turned into a working product?

The project ended in December 2019 and produced conceptual tool designs and research methods across 15 deliverables. Turning the conceptual decision support tool into a commercial product would require a dedicated software development effort, likely requiring additional funding and partnerships beyond what PROSFET covered.

Can this integrate with existing logistics management systems?

Based on available project data, the tool was designed conceptually with input from software houses in the consortium. Integration specifics were not detailed in the project objectives, but the involvement of industry partners suggests practical implementation was considered during the design phase.

Consortium

Who built it

The 10-partner consortium spans 5 countries with a mix of 3 universities, 2 research organizations, 2 industry partners (including software houses), and 3 other organizations. The industry ratio is only 20% with just 1 SME, which is typical for an academic knowledge transfer project rather than a market-driven initiative. The University of Sheffield leads the coordination. The involvement of software houses signals an intent to eventually translate research into practical tools, but the consortium composition and MSCA-RISE funding mechanism confirm this is primarily a research and staff exchange project.

THE UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELDCoordinator · UK
SHEFFIELD CITY COUNCILparticipant · UK
ALGOWATT SPAparticipant · IT
KENTRO EREVNON NOTIOANATOLIKIS EVROPIS ASTIKI MI KERDOSKOPIKI ETAIREIAparticipant · EL
CITY OF BRADFORD METROPOLITAN DISTRICT COUNCILparticipant · UK
UNIVERSIDAD DE EXTREMADURAparticipant · ES
CONSIGLIO NAZIONALE DELLE RICERCHEparticipant · IT
STOCKHOLMS STADparticipant · SE
GOETEBORGS UNIVERSITETparticipant · SE

How to reach the team

The coordinator is the University of Sheffield (UK). SciTransfer can facilitate an introduction to discuss the decision support tool concept and potential commercialization.

Order a report on this consortium See THE UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to explore whether PROSFET's urban freight planning methods fit your city logistics challenges? SciTransfer can connect you with the research team and assess commercial potential.

Order a report on this topic More in Transport & Mobility