Retail Travelution: Themes and questions

If we carry on in the same way as now, then the centre of London will be 60% more congested by 2031. More people are having goods delivered to them at work: the top 1% of companies in London generate 10% of all trips. The behaviour of both customers and retailers needs to change, but how do we do this? Perhaps charging for deliveries is the answer. Customers have become used to free next day delivery on Amazon Prime; perhaps this should cost more, and overnight deliveries should be incentivised.

Retailers too should think about the impact their practices are having on transport. The margins in grocery retail are slim, so cost of deliveries is a major factor, but retailers also consider getting the product on the shelves on time, and CSR. We could be seeing a return to using waterways to transport goods. In a recent trial of carrying goods via barge vs lorry, the barge proved faster three days out of five. If water transport or rail freight can prove more reliable than road then they become viable alternatives. The problem is that – at the moment at least – the current system of moving goods by road works, so why change?

Transport and retail are increasingly converging and at various points during the day the concept of "transport as place" was mentioned.  St Pancras station is perhaps the best example.  It is becoming a destination in its own right with non-travellers, with art programmes and pianos as well as a Champagne bar and a John Lewis (with click and collect).  Yet it also has to service commuters who pass through it ten times a week, so it needs a quick turnaround in window displays and stock, to keep things fresh.