Travel behavior of e-consumers: do travel habits vary among last-mile practices?

E-commerce can no longer be considered out of the daily lives of many consumers. In recent years, both the frequency of purchases and the amount spent have skyrocketed. This study also observed a significant shift from lower purchase frequency (every 3 to 6 months and every 6 to 12 months) to higher (monthly and weekly) ones. This growing tendency has been further supported by the coronavirus outbreak, as over 50% of Belgian online shoppers cited the impact of the health crisis as a factor in their decision to shop online. This shift from bricks to clicks raises the question of the effects on consumers' travel behavior. Most research focuses on the overall impact of online shopping on personal mobility. However, little is known about how to characterize personal shopping mobility when considering the various last-mile options and weight categories of online purchases. This paper does not only map the travel behavior and last-mile practices of the Belgian e-commerce users but also gives crucial information related to customer travel behavior in order to assess the environmental impact of e-commerce from a consumer side. This research is based on self-reported travel data collected through an online-survey among the Belgian e-consumers (N = 2105). Results indicate that respondents' last- mile choices are not greatly affected by the weight category of an order. Yet, significant difference between the different modes used, travel distances and number of stops across the four last-mile options can be observed. Furthermore, regional variations were also noted in consumer travel patterns.

Publication year:2023

Keywords:Online shopping, Consumer behavior, Travel patterns, last-mile delivery, Last-mile practices