The staggering state of freight in London
Data from Shiply, a UK transport logistics company,1 shows that the number of parcels delivered in the UK has grown exponentially over the past decade, from 1.7 billion parcels in 2013 to over 5 billion parcels in 2023.2 Shiply stated that this equates to 159 parcels delivered each second, and that approximately 80 parcels were received per person in the UK in 2023.3
Five sectors make up the bulk of freight in London:
- Parcel delivery – goods delivered direct to consumers, usually at a small scale
- Food and its supply chains – includes food delivered in bulk to supermarkets, groceries delivered to homes in larger orders and short-notice, small-scale grocery or meal deliveries on demand
- Construction – building and maintenance work
- Servicing – carrying equipment, tools and materials for work
- Waste and reuse – includes household waste, commercial waste and construction waste.4
In the second meeting of its investigation into road space, driving and congestion, Transport Committee Members will ask questions about the types of freight in London, the impact on London’s roads, freight consolidation and land use and use of other modes of transport for freight. The guests are:
Panel 1 - 10:00am – 11:30am:
- Natalie Chapman, Head of Public Affairs, Logistics UK
- James Barwise, Policy Lead for Infrastructure, Road Haulage Association
- Ian Wainwright, Future City Logistics
Panel 2 - 11:45am – 1:00pm:
- Fiona Coull, Senior Programme Manager, Cross River Partnership
- Keith Doe, Director of Light Freight Logistics, Uber Boat by Thames Clipper
- Ben Knowles, CEO, Pedal Me
The meeting will take place on Wednesday 12 November at 10am in the Chamber at City Hall, Kamal Chunchie Way, E16 1ZE.
Media and members of the public are invited to attend.
The meeting can also be viewed LIVE or later via webcast or YouTube.
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Notes to editors
- Shiply, Our Story
- Shiply, UK Delivery And Courier Industry Statistics
- Shiply, UK Delivery And Courier Industry Statistics
- Centre for London, Worth the Weight: Making London’s deliveries greener and smarter, Chapter 2: The goods and services moving around London, 2 November 2021
- Read the agenda in full
- As well as investigating issues that matter to Londoners, the London Assembly acts as a check and a balance on the Mayor
- Elly Baker AM, Chair of the Transport Committee, is available for interview
- Find out more about the work of the Transport Committee
For more details, please contact Alison Bell on 07887 832 918 or at [email protected]. For out of hours media enquiries, call 020 7983 4000 and ask for the London Assembly duty press officer.