This doctoral thesis represents pioneering research in integrating Smart Mobile Lockers with City Buses (SML-CBs) for e-commerce last-mile delivery, a novel concept rooted in the sharing economy. It explores the innovative use of underutilized urban bus capacities for parcel transportation while incorporating smart parcel lockers to facilitate self-pick-up by customers. Comprising six chapters, the thesis delineates its background, motivations, contributions, and organization in Chapter 1. Chapter 2 presents a comprehensive review of the recent literature on last-mile freight deliveries, including a bibliometric analysis, identifying gaps and opportunities for SML-CBs intervention. In Chapter 3, using survey data, we conduct empirical analytics to study Canadian consumers’ attitudes towards adopting SML-CBs, focusing on deterrents such as excessive walking distances to pick-up locations and incentives led by environmental concerns. This chapter also pinpoints demographic segments likely to be early adopters of this innovative delivery system. To address the concerns over walking distances identified in Chapter 3, Chapter 4 presents a prescriptive model and algorithms aimed at minimizing customer walking distance to self-pick-up points, considering the assignment of SML-CBs and customers. The case study results endorse the convenience of SML-CBs in terms of short walking distances. To systematically assess the sustainability benefits, a key motivator identified in Chapter 3, Chapter 5 includes analytical models for pricing and accessibility of SML-CBs. It also employs a hybrid life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology to analyze the sustainability performance of SML-CBs. It establishes system boundaries, develops pertinent LCA parameters, and illustrates substantial greenhouse gas (GHG) savings in both operational and life cycle phases when SML-CBs are utilized instead of traditional delivery trucks. The dissertation is concluded in Chapter 6, summarizing the principal contributions and suggesting avenues for future research. This comprehensive study not only provides empirical and analytical evidence supporting the feasibility and advantages of SML-CBs but also contributes to the literature on sustainable logistics and urban freight deliveries. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / This doctoral thesis represents pioneering research in integrating Smart Mobile Lockers with City Buses (SML-CBs) for e-commerce last-mile delivery. It explores the innovative use of underutilized urban bus capacities for parcel transportation while incorporating smart parcel lockers to facilitate self-pick-up by customers. Comprising six chapters, the thesis delineates its background, motivations, contributions, and organization in Chapter 1. Chapter 2 presents a comprehensive review of the recent literature on lastmile freight deliveries. In Chapter 3, we study Canadian consumers’ attitudes towards adopting SML-CBs, focusing on deterrents such as excessive walking distances to pickup locations and incentives led by environmental concerns. To address the concerns over walking distances identified in Chapter 3, Chapter 4 presents models and algorithms for operating SML-CBs. Chapter 5 presents an assessment of the sustainability of SML-CBs. The dissertation is concluded in Chapter 6, summarizing the principal contributions and suggesting avenues for future research.

De senaste åren har kantats av en ökad e-handel samt allt högre krav från kunder på leveransalternativ. Paketbox är ett leveransalternativ som ökar alltmer i popularitet men är i Sverige fortfarande under utveckling. Två branscher där de flesta kunder har e-handlat från är apoteksbranschen och modebranschen. Dessutom har dessa branscher haft en tydlig tillväxt de senaste åren. Tidigare forskning om paketbox dock begränsad, framför allt i Sverige. Således är syftet med studien att kartlägga vilka faktorer som är viktiga för kunder vid användning av paketbox som leveransalternativ i Sverige vid e-handel från apoteks- respektive modebranschen. Utifrån detta syfte konstruerades följande två forskningsfrågor: ”Vilka faktorer är viktiga för kunder vid användning av paketbox som leveransalternativ vid e-handel från apoteks- respektive modebranschen?” samt ”Vilka faktorskillnader och -likheter finns det för kunder vid användning av paketbox som leveransalternativ vid e-handel från apoteks- respektive modebranschen?”. I linje med syftet och för att skapa en generaliserbarhet valdes en kvantitativ metod i form av en enkätundersökning. Faktorerna som undersöktes var leveranstid, geografisk bekvämlighet, öppettider, miljömässig hållbarhet, användarvänlighet och undvikande av mänsklig interaktion. Resultaten visar att samtliga faktorer var viktiga för paketboxanvändare men i olika grad. Däremot fanns det faktorskillnader vid paketbox som leveransalternativ vid e-handel från apoteks- respektive modebranschen för två av de sex undersökta faktorerna. Leveranstid visade sig vara viktigare för kunder vid paketbox som leveransalternativ vid e-handel från apoteksbranschen. Miljömässig hållbarhet var däremot viktigare för kunder vid paketbox som leveransalternativ vid e-handel från modebranschen. Således bidrar denna studie med kunskap om vad kunder upplever som viktigt vid paketboxanvändning. Vidare belyser studien att det finns faktorskillnader vid e-handel via paketbox från apoteks- respektive modebranschen. Studiens bidrag öppnar upp för vidare forskning inom ämnet för branschskillnader vid paketboxanvändning och vad det kan bero på. / In recent years, e-commerce as well as customer demands regarding delivery options have increased. The parcel locker is a delivery option that is increasing in popularity, but it is still under development in Sweden. Two industries where most customers have e-shopped from are the pharmacy- and the fashion industries. In addition, these industries have had a distinct growth in recent years. Previous research on parcel lockers is limited, especially in Sweden. Therefore, the purpose of the study is to map which factors are important when using parcel locker as a delivery option in Sweden when e-shopping from the pharmacy and fashion industries. Based on this purpose, the following two research questions were constructed: "What factors are important for customers' use of parcel locker as a delivery option when e-shopping from pharmacy and fashion industries?" and "What factor differences and similarities for customers can be found when using parcel locker as a delivery option when e-shopping from pharmacy and fashion industries?". In line with this purpose and to create a generalizability, a quantitative method was chosen in the form of a survey. Factors examined were delivery time, geographical convenience, opening hours, environmental sustainability, ease of use and avoidance of human interaction. The results show that all factors were important for parcel locker users but to varying degrees. On the other hand, there were factor differences for two of the six factors when customers use parcel locker as a delivery option when e-shopping from the pharmacy and fashion industries. Delivery time proved to be more important for parcel locker users when e-shopping from the pharmacy industry. Environmental sustainability, on the other hand, proved to be more important for parcel locker users when e-shopping from the fashion industry. This study contributes with knowledge of what could be perceived as important when using parcel lockers. Furthermore, this study highlights that there are factor differences when e-shopping via parcel lockers from pharmacy and fashion industries. The study's contribution opens for further research regarding how customer preferences about parcel lockers differ when e-shopping from different industries.