Abstract In this paper, we investigate the synchronization between the two echelons in two-echelon urban distribution systems. The first echelon aims at transferring goods from a warehouse to a (single) city hub located in the city center. The second echelon, managed with a fleet of environmentally friendly vehicles, delivers goods to final customers, from the city hub. The two echelons are synchronized in time but also with regards to the capacity of the city hub. As far as we know, this is the first study considering the latter issue in the context of two-echelon distribution. To deal with the synchronization while optimizing the distribution, we propose a three-phase heuristic solution approach. At first, our approach optimizes the distribution for the second echelon. Then, it manages the synchronization. Finally, it optimizes the distribution for the first echelon. Population-based metaheuristics and integer programs are used. Results show the effectiveness of the method and permit to derive managerial insights on the distribution.

中文翻译：

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具有一个功能强大的城市中心的两级分布

摘要本文研究了两级城市配送系统中两级之间的同步。第一个梯队旨在将货物从仓库转移到位于市中心的（单个）城市枢纽。第二梯队由一批环保车辆管理，从市中心向最终客户运送货物。这两个梯队在时间上是同步的，但在城市枢纽能力方面也是同步的。据我们所知，这是在两级分配的背景下考虑后一个问题的第一个研究。为了在优化分配的同时处理同步，我们提出了一种三相启发式解决方案。首先，我们的方法优化了第二梯队的分布。然后，它管理同步。最后，它优化了第一梯队的分配。使用基于总体的元启发式方法和整数程序。结果表明了该方法的有效性，并允许对分布进行管理。