Online Assignment of a Heterogeneous Fleet in Urban Delivery

Vans, cargo bikes, or even autonomous delivery vehicles are used in urban parcel delivery. A fleet consisting of these vehicles is called heterogeneous, differing in several technological dimensions including speed, range, as well as the impact on the delivery process. This research analyzes the operations of such a heterogeneous fleet in express urban parcel delivery. The heterogeneous vehicles are assigned to serve dynamically requesting customers within a delivery promise. We propose and analyze the strengths and weaknesses of selected policies assigning heterogeneous vehicles to serve customer requests in delivery districts with differing characteristics.