Car Sharing Arrives on US Campuses

Guest Post by Dr. Stacey Little, program director, Logistics and Transportation Management at American Public University

During a recent visit to Columbus, Ohio, I made a stop by The Ohio State University campus. I was surprised to see two-seater, blue and white car2go smart cars parked in various spots throughout campus. This was my first look at a transportation option that is a growing trend at campuses across the country.

Car2go is an on demand, street parking, one-way car sharing model. It is available to students, faculty, staff and visitors. Member benefits include free parking in car2go designated spots. In addition, students, faculty and staff can find an available car2go near them by using a smartphone app, searching the car2go website, or calling a customer service number. The rental fee is 38 cents per minute of use (not parked) and includes fuel and insurance.

Students, faculty and staff can also to travel off campus with car2go and park in designated spots throughout the city. When users get to their final destination, they park in any approved parking spot and leave the car for the next traveler.

Car sharing options have been in place for some time in major cities to help with congestion and limited parking but are somewhat new on college campuses. Since my visit to Ohio, I have found that there are other companies offering similar services on campuses. For instance, at Purdue University, students, faculty and staff have access to Zipcars.

Car sharing on campuses provides a transportation alternative, reduces the demand for on-campus parking, decreases congestion on campus streets, and demonstrates a concern for the environment. According to the The New York Times, last year nearly 800,000 people belonged to a car sharing service in the United States. It seems car sharing is a transportation alternative that is quickly catching on.

About the Author

Dr. Stacey Little is Program Director for the Transportation & Logistics Management program. She has over 12 years of experience in teaching in Business and Logistics in both the online and traditional format.  She has a Professional Designation in Logistics and Supply Chain Management and a Certification in Transportation and Logistics from the American Society of Transportation and Logistics. Her research interests are in the area of cultural influences on supply chain relationships​.

Self-Driving Vehicles and Automated Returns Are Coming Soon to a Retailer Near You

Changes are coming to logistics and reverse logistics that will significantly impact operations at large retail organizations and other industries. 

First, the use of self-driving trucks is going to revolutionize the transportation of materials from distribution center to retail outlet. The efficiencies gained by the Wal-Mart WAVE system, combined with the self-driving capabilities of the Mercedes designed Future Truck, add up to an amazing new truck that will bring dramatic changes to shipping processes. 

Self-driving cars are not as far off as we might think. The self-driving car market is expected to reach  $87 billion by 2030. Mercedes plans to offer a self-driving package on cars released by 2020.  In fact, three major automobile manufacturers are already conducting driverless car testing in the U.S. 

Self-driving vehicles offer the benefit of fewer accidents; they never get distracted, feel fatigue, or drive at anything less than 100 percent.  This technology will certainly evolve over time and acceptance might be slow at first.  When seatbelts and, later, airbags were first introduced, public response was tepid at best.  Over time, as the safety and value of these items was proven, they became standard for all vehicles.  Self-driving vehicles will likely follow the same pattern. 

A technology revolution is coming for the processing of returns.  Lowes and Nestle have reported that they will be introducing robots as sales associates by the end of this year. Although this seems to be more related to sales, this technology developed for self-service checkout is going to revolutionize returns. Instead of standing in the return line, customers will be able to go to a return station to complete the transaction.

The system would combine the customer service robot with a self-checkout station. The station would weigh the item being returned and scan the item and receipt bar codes. The return station could then dispense a gift card with the correct credited value. Just as with self-checkout stations, this would allow for a single employee to monitor several return stations, thereby reducing costs and increasing efficiency. 

Both of these developments are going to change how large retailers manage both their logistics and reverse logistics. While the technology is not yet perfected, these changes are going to happen sooner than expected and it is already time to anticipate and prepare.