An Interactive Visualization Tool for Collaborative Construction Logistics Planning—Creating a Sustainable Project Vicinity

Abstract

The intensity of urban development is presently high, creating a construction boom. The number of transports per project is a major consideration in urban goods transport and emissions from a project. Presently, the stakeholders take part in a “blame game” in assigning fault for the emissions from construction transport and the disturbances to society in the vicinity of construction sites. Incorporation of logistics into urban planning requires an increased understanding of the interaction between construction transport flows and urban land use, and the inclusion of different stakeholders. The purpose of the study is to support collaborative planning of construction transport in urban planning, and specifically to explore how a planning tool based on interactive visualization could be designed. An action research process has generated two prototypes of an interactive visualization tool for collaborative planning of construction transport. The prototype facilitates a “shared deliberation space” by identifying alternatives and assessing predicted consequences, which supports a collaborative urban planning process. Based on the research conducted, we claim that the responsibility of construction transport planning should be taken by the municipality, i.e., the urban planning and traffic planning functions.