Delivering goods in Zaragoza’s historic city centre is not always straightforward. Narrow streets, pedestrianised areas and limited space for loading and unloading make everyday deliveries a challenge. But what if goods could be brought closer to their destinations without relying on conventional delivery vans? Zaragoza is exploring exactly that, turning an underused municipal market into a neighbourhood logistics hub and introducing small electrically assisted carts to navigate the city’s historic streets.
In this episode, Katy and Thato take listeners inside the Zaragoza Living Lab to explore the proximity logistic solutions. Together with Alfonso Molina from CityLogin and Konstantina Katsela from the University of Gothenburg, they discuss how an underused municipal market was adapted as a neighbourhood logistics hub and how electrically assisted carts were introduced for deliveries in Zaragoza’s historic centre.
Beyond Zaragoza, the discussion opens up wider questions about transferability and scalability. What makes a microhub economically and operationally viable? How can municipalities and logistics operators work together? And how can solutions developed for one neighbourhood be adapted to different urban environments without losing their effectiveness?
At the heart of the episode is a broader question: is transforming last-mile delivery mainly about introducing new vehicles and infrastructure? Or is it about creating the right regulatory, operational and collaborative conditions for innovative solutions to succeed and grow?
If you would like to find out more about this episode, check the links below. And of course, subscribe to our podcast to keep up with new episodes and hear more about the future of urban mobility.
Links for this episode:
Contributors:
Alfonso Molina, —CityLogin
Konstantina Katsela, — University of Gothenburg
Jingle: Santiago Campos, Musicbox
Visuals: DISCO project, Breda University of Applied Sciences
Disclaimer
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101103954. The sole responsibility for the content of this website lies with the authors. It does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the European Union. Neither the INEA nor the European Commission are responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained therein.
