Price comparison website Money.co.uk has confirmed nine out of 10 shoppers plan to order online in the 2020 Black Friday sale, creating a surge in vehicle emissions.
Lockdown had already created a surge in online purchases, with Black Friday events expected to be the biggest ever, with just 0.3% of shoppers planning to spend exclusively in stores and lockdown preventing some stores from opening.
With each order means another delivery which generates carbon dioxide, causing a spike in emissions. This made worse due to people relying on next day deliveries and short delivery times, increasing the concentration of demand to a short space of time. This overloads the capacity of firms to deliver in the normal way, meaning they hire extra drivers using their own vehicles, which are often much less efficient.
Experts say a little patience from consumers would be a big help, with same-day delivery also causing problems as it gives firms less time to consolidate orders on their routes.
While 85% of UK consumers plan to shop for Black Friday deals, just one in 10 said they considered the impact of their deliveries on the environment.
Carbon emissions
Online shopping on Black Friday this year is predicted to release over 429,000 tonnes of carbon emissions into the atmosphere. Each delivery company is set to produce this amount of carbon over Black Friday:
|
Delivery company |
Parcels | Carbon produced (Tonnes CO2) |
|
Hermes |
13,900,000 | 58,313 |
|
DPD |
10,000,000 | 41,952 |
|
Royal Mail |
8,500,000 | 35,659 |
|
Yodel |
5,098,559 | 21,389 |
|
CitySprint |
100,000 | 419.52 |
The website has also ranked the delivery firms on their attitude to carbon emissions. It ranked Royal Mail the most carbon-conscious because of its 'feet on the street' network of 90,000 postal workers. Each year Royal Mail delivers around 1.8 billion parcels, and has trialled e-trikes.
Amazon is also praised for the number of click-and-collect parcels, which prevents home deliveries whilst also driving footfall to local businesses. UPS is also mentioned for doing best regarding electric or hybrid vehicles.
The Black Friday problem
Professor Greg Marsden from Leeds University transport confirmed the expectations of a Black Friday carbon dioxide surge but did say numbers were hard to calculate as some deliveries replace shopping trips into town.
He said: "The Black Friday problem is that retailers [have] created a huge peak in demand which needs to be met immediately".
"There’s the same issue with deliveries of chocolates and flowers when it comes to Mother’s Day".
Stephen Joseph, visiting professor at the University of Hertfordshire, told BBC News: "When it comes to measuring traffic, there’s loads of data on cars".
"But we can see with our own eyes that many vehicles on the road are vans – they need to be researched better and given more prominence in policy".
A report from the Resolution Foundation has reflected on the growth in online shopping, particularly during the coronavirus pandemic, and recommends introducing a Home Delivery Congestion Charge as a pilot for broader road pricing.
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