Eco-labeling of freight transport services: Design, evaluation, and research directions

The idea of eco-labeling is to provide customers with an easy-to-understand signal regarding the ecological impact of using a product or service. With this paper, we propose an eco-labeling system for freight transportation. We discuss design options based on a common emission reporting standard and a related communication protocol. We further explain a procedure for deriving labels for shipments of goods and provide examples illustrating and evaluating the labeling process at selected land-based freight transport services. Results indicate that eco-labels can grade the environmental impact of a transport service reliably, even if heterogeneous goods are moved together. Finally, we outline challenges for future research associated with eco-labeling in freight transportation markets.