What factors make urban areas good/bad for trucks?

There's a few type of urban deliveries. Like warehouse which has there own space and dock for trucks, and there's small chain, ma and pa which we have to either take up the entire parking lot or block a lane and unload from the street. I'm more familiar with small chain stores so ally access is great so I won't be in anyone's way expect blocking a few car garages.
Truck routes would be helpful... There's a lot of low bridges in Chicago and only a few roads to go around them.
Distance: better if the customer is right off the highway than taking a nice busy tour around town.
Pedestrian activity: high pedestrian puts us in high alert. Pedestrian are like deers, we don't know where they're going. Same with bikes routes, riding around with pedestrian and cyclist really gets stressful because we don't wanna kill anyone.
Off street parking: now I'm not sure about this one. There's only ONE store that I know has a design spot just for trucks to unload. Putting that in Chicago will make 4wheelers think it's another parking space.
Parking meters: when it comes to deliveries....no driver will pay that stupid meter. We're blocking 5 meters, yeah...what's that now $10? I never paid, never saw a driver did, we do our job and leave.
Building age: there's a lot of places with poor broken docks and road condition. But the job still needs to be done and we work with it.

Idk what else you need I just name things off my head

 

I don't think cities today WANT to make life easier for truckers honestly. If anything, cities (responding to taxpayer complaints) work hard to impose as many restrictions as possible up to the point of them not being able to bring in the goods. (They want to eat and shop in the cities but don't want to see or deal with truck traffic ... it's a real conundrum for city planners and law makers)

Southern California (Orange County and parts of LA County) are probably the most truck friendly areas with massive commerce in terms of wide streets that are fairly easy to navigate. The freeway system is another story due to simply too much traffic volume. But what those areas all need is more accessible, temporary truck parking areas and services. (Not going to happen due to CA EPA rules and regs that are extremely restrictive)

 

Keep making trailers taller, wider, longer and heavier and this is what happens. I say we should make just one gigantic trailer that covers the width of Dallas that has some kind of hovering device and vertical takeoff, that way it can just hover around the country airdropping pallets that would be the only way to keep everyone happy.

We make the pickups in tiny little straight trucks and airlift them to the Hover Box and then it just keeps moving and airdropping. Much like the mothership from Independence Day.

 

The bottom line is we don't want to be in urban areas equal to residents not wanting us there. Therefore I believe the most import are close proximity to the highways and well signed designated truck routes.

 

Well that's probably not going to happen ... today's "modern progressive planner" wants people (everyone if they had their way) living and working in the same urban areas, all within walking/bus distance ... kind of like life in modern China.

 

The factors that I have considered are, the top ones highlighted in bold:


Truck parking tickets rate (proxy for if there are places for trucks to park) -this would be an unknown, unable to predict
Truck accidents rate (proxy for street design) - this would be an unknown, unable to predict

Number of traffic lanes or street width - narrow streets and sharp corners would be a major hindrance, especially during the daytime and rush hours

Distance (time) from the highway exit - irrelevant
Crime or theft rate (is it safe for the driver) - a large number of urban customers are in higher crime areas. could be a deterrent to drivers unaccustomed to cities
Low pedestrian activity - not an issue unless having to drive or back up over a sidewalk
Alley access - not a common occurrence for large trucks

Truck route designation - lack of proper routing or signage can lead to lost drivers, trucks in areas not meant for trucks, and the increased risk of accidents.

Presence of bike lanes or bus routes - see Low pedestrian activity
Land use (residential land use may result in more complaints about noise) - not a concern. I assume people near commercial districts expect a higher level of noise. Though if I am in the area during night hours, I do try to limit my noise level.

Availability of off street parking - If there is no place to place to wait to be unloaded, it can be stressful for the driver and lead to the driver having to drive around looking for a place to wait or have the driver drive around the block until it is his time to be unloaded. See truck route designation

Service provider access- truck stops, truck wash, truck mechanics - truck wash could be an issue for refrigerated trailers who sometimes need to have their trailer washed out. Most service calls are mechanics with a repair vehicle.

Roadway height and weight restrictions -this ties in with Truck Route Designation.

Municipal restrictions (i.e. time of day) - more of an issue with the business.

Congestion - rush hours on the surface streets is a large stress for trucks in the area. More so if driver has little or no experience

Presence of parking meters - not a concern unless truck is in a business district. but usually there are loading zones for that purpose
Building age (may reflect quality of loading dock) - most inner city locations are old. space maybe limited but not a issue.

 

Well if I was working on your thesis, I'd point out that the concept of HOV lanes has gotten it completely backwards.

It's not the local commuter that has to shave 10 minutes off his car pooling commute that benefits from accessing a restricted lane for all of 40 miles. (at MAX!)

It's the long haul truck that is passing though the ENTIRE metro area non-stop that would reap the most benefits from an exclusive lane.

They would be away from local merging traffic, could go a set speed for the duration, and would be away from the "non-professional" drivers. (for their SAFETY!)

I-95 in CT is a good example of how restricting trucks to the RIGHT lane increases delays and leads to more accidents.

While the NJTP, as another example has a dedicated truck roadway and a "cars only" roadway. (although cars are allowed on the truck lane and in some sections even then trucks are limited to half the lanes, (?!?) but that's another story)

Good luck.