Sustainable Urban Logistics and Supply Chain 4.0: A Literature Overview and Future Directions

The rapid growth of urbanization and the increasing complexity of global Supply Chains (SCs) have posed significant challenges to Urban Logistics (UL) and SC management (SCM) practices. In response to these challenges, this paper provides a literature overview of the convergence between sustainable ULs (SUL) and SC 4.0. To establish context, the study begins by examining the foundational concepts of SUL and SC 4.0, highlighting their individual contributions to environmental, economic, and social sustainability, as well as efficiency and competitiveness in modern SCs. Moreover, the review of literature reveals that recent advancements in digital technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data Analytics (BDA), Blockchain, and Artificial Intelligence (AI), have enabled the integration of sustainability principles into UL and SCM through SC 4.0 frameworks. As a result, this integration has led to enhanced visibility, traceability, real-time decision-making, and optimization of logistics operations, while simultaneously reducing environmental footprints. Furthermore, the paper examines the obstacles and difficulties that arise when implementing SUL within SC 4.0, including concerns about data security, infrastructure, and facilitating cooperation among stakeholders. This underscores the importance of a comprehensive, interdisciplinary approach and outlines future research opportunities.