The Climate Benefit of Ditching Next-Day Delivery
By Simmone Shah
Published on March 31, 2026.
The climate impact of next-day delivery can be significantly reduced due to the "last-mile" of delivery, which produces the most emissions due to multiple stops, traffic, and inefficient routes. One 2022 study found that up to 50% of a delivery's total carbon emissions are from this last mile. The demand for ultra-fast shipping has exacerbated this issue. Dr. Sreedevi Rajagopalan, director of the MIT Sustainable Supply Chain Lab, suggests that companies should adopt more sustainable online shopping habits and encourage customers to consolidate their items into one package or choose a slower shipping option. Amazon and Walmart have committed to getting at least 100,000 electric delivery vehicles on the road by 2030 and FedEx has pledged to convert its entire delivery fleet to zero-emission electric vehicles by 2040.
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