In Cesena we are working to define a model of an integrated logistics system for goods that can be effective and efficient, sustainable from an environmental point of view and shared by economic operators, to be tested in the pilot area of the historic centre. In October 2023, the municipal administration and the trade associations participating in the “InCesena” table, with the visit and analysis of the model implemented by the city of Vicenza, started a process to define a proposal for sustainable urban logistics , to the benefit of commercial activities, urban roads and the environment in the historic center area, eliminating the indiscriminate passage of vehicles and vans for the delivery of goods from the city center. Following the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding for the creation of a permanent table on sustainable urban logistics, the municipal administration is now starting a two-year planning and experimentation process, thanks to the funding of 80 thousand euros awarded by the Emilia-Romagna Region as part of the tender for the support of laboratories for business innovation and sustainability.
The path, which will end in December 2025 and which also involves the CISE, Special Company of the Chamber of Commerce accredited to the Emilia-Romagna High Technology Network, and the Urban Cluster Urban Economy of the Emilia-Romagna Region, will be characterized by two phases main ones that will respond to what is defined in the document shared by the “InCesena” table, which fits fully within the scope of the path represented by the “Strategic Plan for the future of the Historic Center of Cesena”: reducing travel, reorganizing mobility and supply systems in a different way, as a solution to improve the way people perceive and experience the spaces around them; start a reconnaissance and testing of a new access model to the historic center for commercial vehicles; implement a last mile delivery system in the historic center that is sustainable from an ecological, but also economic point of view, and which reduces traffic in the city; rethinking “the logistics of customer service, with innovative structures and helpful information from traders”.
The first phase will concern the analysis of the current logistics system of goods (delivery methods, warehouse location, type of goods and means of transport), through meetings with companies, guided by an expert consultant, to understand the needs and the current situation and evaluate its critical points and strengths. Following this, a proposed co-design process will begin with the aim of designing a new model of sustainable mobility of goods for the last mile, fundamental for studying the needs of economic operators operating in the area. Together with the technical partners, 5 focus groups will be held aimed at the businesses and activities of the center and moments of public consultation and sharing open to citizens. At the end of the participatory process, a local partnership agreement for the quality of freight transport will also be signed together with the trade associations involved.
The study phase will be completed by a real experimentation of the project in the area of the historic center of Cesena, a particularly sensitive area where commercial activities and cultural services coexist. Together with the companies, guided by an expert consultant, an integrated and sustainable mobility system for goods will be developed and defined, creating a logistical model of the historic center of Cesena Ultimo Miglio. The system will then be validated by Clust-ER and its network of associates. The impacts on the companies involved and on the citizens will concern the socio-economic, climatic and environmental aspects and will be monitored through the following indicators: at least 10% reduction in congestion in the urban centre, monitored through the reduction in the number of goods vehicles and their mileage in the city center areas, decrease in CO2 emissions; satisfaction of the companies and activities involved on the effectiveness of the logistics service.
