Revival of cost benefit analysis for evaluating the city distribution centre concept?

Abstract

Consolidation is the key concept for gaining efficiencies logistics chains and the development of new city distribution centres is a potential way of establishing consolidation. In this paper we investigate how Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) can play a major role to be supportive in the pre-feasibility of these studies. In order to understand the supportive value of this methodology we have analyzed the effects of a new main road for public transport connecting several small cities combined with a new solution for freight problems in these towns. The new solution encompasses the development of a new public warehouse. This paper contains a detailed explanation of the methodology and we present some conclusions about the pre-feasibility of the new distribution centre and the supportive role of the methodology in terms of stakeholder participation.