Critical aggressive acceleration values and models for fuel consumption when starting and driving a passenger car running on LPG

The models based on vehicle speed have been used to estimate fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions. However, these models could not properly estimate the change in fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions as the speed changes. As for the alternative method, people try to consider using acceleration instead of speed. Although acceleration has been seriously considered, determining critical aggressive acceleration value in relation to fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions is difficult to find. In this study, evaluation models of fuel consumption were developed using instantaneous acceleration, and we defined the critical aggressive acceleration values for different states of the vehicle from the viewpoints of fuel consumption and emissions. We used a mid-sized Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) passenger car and obtained instantaneous data from a digital tachograph installed in the car while it accelerates. We developed two fuel consumption models and found critical aggressive accelerations, respectively: a model of starting vehicle that measures range of speed required to overcome the inertia during acceleration from stop state, and the other model for the driving state. We used Classification and Regression Tree (CART) analysis to find the critical aggressive accelerations at which the increments of fuel consumption change abruptly. As a result, the critical aggressive accelerations causing abrupt change in the increments of fuel consumption were found to be 2.598 m/s² for the starting of vehicles and 1.4705 m/s² when driving them. We also found that the increments of fuel consumption can be explained through quadratic and exponential functions with instantaneous acceleration.     

The effect of flight distance on fuel mileage and CO2 per passenger kilometer

In this study, the effect of distance on fuel mileage (fuel burn per nautical mile) and CO₂ intensity, based on a large amount of actual flight data, is discussed for narrow-body commercial aircraft performing domestic flights for flight distances of between ～200 and ～800 NM, in Turkey. For twenty-nine domestic routes, the average CO₂ intensity is calculated to be 88 gr/pa-km, with an 80% load factor, ranging from between 112 gr/pa-km (207 gr/pa-NM) for the shortest route and 78 gr/pa-km (145 gr/pa-NM) for the longest route. An overall runway-to-runway analysis reveals that the average flight fuel consumption increases by 5.1 kg for each additional nautical mile. The discussion is extended to cover wind effect, through westbound and eastbound flights, on fuel consumption. The average fuel mileage of the eastbound flights, above 30 kft, is found to be 11.2% lower than those for the westbound flights. A sensitivity analysis is also carried out to reveal the effects of three main flight performance parameters, namely, cruise altitude, cruise speed and aircraft mass on the cruise CO₂ intensity.     

Life-cycle CO2 emissions and influential factors for asphalt highway construction and maintenance activities in China

This study tried to clarify the magnitude of CO₂ emissions from highway construction and maintenance in China through life cycle assessment (LCA) method. For this, 227 real highway projects constructed from the year 2000 to 2011 in Zhejiang Province, China are classified into six types by two categories of N road (62 projects without grand bridge, great bridge and tunnel) and Y road (165 projects with the same road structures) and three sub-categories of (i) newly constructed road, (ii) replacing pavement road and (iii) full rehabilitated road. Significant influential factors of LCA results were revealed through multivariate linear regression models, combined with data quality assessment and sensitivity analysis. Numerical interval of assessment results indicate that the construction emissions of N highway project are more centralized to no more than 2900 t/lane-km, while Y project have a normal upper boundary of construction CO₂ emissions, about 5000 t/lane-km. The contribution of maintenance to CO₂ emissions probably could exceed that of newly construction both for Y project and N project. In addition, the pavement replacing and rehabilitation could bring about large amount of CO₂ emissions which even match with the CO₂ emissions from cumulative traffic volume during highway's life cycle. There are common factors for six categories. Cement and steel are the top largest CO₂ emissions contributors and sensitive factors for N road and Y road. The LCA results are not sensitive to the local construction materials but sensitive to the emission factor of diesel used in transportation and on-site construction.     

Light-duty electric vehicles in the gulf? Techno-economic assessment and policy implications

We investigate the economic and technological potential for adoption of Electric Vehicles (EVs) in Abu Dhabi through a parametric assessment, a public attitude survey, and a diffusion model. Abu Dhabi, similar to fossil-fuel-rich countries in its region, features a car-dependent society and energy subsidies while being situated in hot, desert environment challenging to EVs. We compare conventional vehicles and EVs in the region accounting for the higher use of air-conditioning (AC) in the actual climatic and driving pattern conditions of Abu Dhabi developing an EV AC consumption penalty model. Average annual AC penalty in fuel consumption over normal testing conditions is 16% for conventional vehicles and 25% for EVs based on hourly weather and vehicle utilization patterns. For 250 days per year, the expected EV range is higher than 75% of the nominal value. During the five hottest days of the recorded year, it can drop to 60% but still covering the average daily driving of the majority of users with a single charge with a 25kWh battery. With partial subsidies offered for both fuel and electricity, EV adoption impacts the state in terms of opportunity costs for these fuels in addition to environmental externalities. We calculate the state and user benefits in a parametric analysis dependent on driving distance and battery costs. If the battery cost is $325/kWh, direct and internalized benefits and costs are balanced when the EV is driven 60 km/day. A diffusion scenario of 5% by 2030 results in cumulative net savings of 6.4 million barrels of oil, a reduction of 517.000 tonnes of CO₂, and a cumulative net benefit of $127 million.     

The effect of a roundabout corridor's design on selecting the optimal crosswalk location: A multi-objective impact analysis

Crosswalks located at mid-block segment between roundabouts can provide a good balance among delay, carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions, and relative difference between vehicles and pedestrians speed. However, when considering local pollutant criteria, the optimal crosswalk location may be different to that obtained for CO₂. This paper described a multi-objective analysis of pedestrian crosswalk locations, with the objectives of minimizing delay, emissions, and relative difference between vehicles and pedestrians speed. Accounting for the difference between global (e.g., CO₂) and local pollutants (monoxide carbon, nitrogen oxides, and hydrocarbons) was one the main considerations of this work. Vehicle activity along with traffic and pedestrian flows data at six roundabout corridors in Portugal, one in Spain, and one in the United States were collected and extracted. A simulation environment using VISSIM, Vehicle Specific Power, and Surrogate Safety Assessment Model models was used to evaluate traffic operations along the sites. The Fast Non-Dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm (NSGA-II) was implemented to further search optimal crosswalk locations. The results yielded improvements to both delay and emissions by using site-optimized crosswalks. The findings also revealed that the spacing between intersections widely influenced the optimal crosswalk location along a mid-block section. If the spacing is low (<100 m), the crosswalk location will be approximately in 20%–30% of the spacing length. For spacing values between 140 and 200 m, crosswalks would be located at the midway position. When a specific pollutant criterion was considered, no significant differences were observed among optimal crosswalk data sets.     

Automobile use,fuel economy and CO2 emissions in industrialized countries: Encouraging trends through 2008?

Car use and fuel economy are factors that determine oil demand and carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions. Recent data on automobile utilization and fuel economy reveal surprising trends that point to changes in oil demand and CO₂ emissions. New vehicle and on-road fleet fuel economy have risen in Europe and Japan since the mid 1990s, and in the US since 2003. Combined with a plateau in per capita vehicle use in all countries analyzed, these trends indicate that per capita fuel use and resultant tail-pipe CO₂ emissions have stagnated or even declined.Fuel economy technology, while important, is not the only factor that explains changes in tested and on-road fuel economy, vehicle efficiency and transport emissions across countries. Vehicle size and performance choices by car producers and buyers, and driving distances have also played significant roles in total fuel consumption, and explain most of the differences among countries. Technology applied to new vehicles managed to drive down the fuel use per unit of horsepower or weight by 50%, yet most of the potential fuel savings were negated by overall increased power and weight, particularly in the US. Similarly, the promise of savings from dieselization of the fleet has revealed itself as a minor element of the overall improvement in new vehicle or on-road fuel economy. And the fact that diesels are driven so much more than gasoline cars, a difference that has increased since 1990, argues that those savings are minimal. This latter point is a reminder that car use, not just efficiency or fuel choice, is an important determinant of total fuel use and CO₂ emissions.We speculate that if the upward spiral of car weight and power slows or even reverses (as has been observed in Europe and Japan) and the now mandatory standards in many countries have the intended effect that fuel use will remain flat or only grow weakly for some time. If real fuel prices of 2008, which rivaled their peaks of the early 1980s, fell back somewhat but still remain well above their early 2000 values. If the prices remain high, this, combined with the strengthened fuel economy standards, may finally lead to new patterns of car ownership, use and fuel economy. However, if fuel prices continue their own stagnation or even decline after the peaks of 2008 and car use starts upward, fuel use will increase again, albeit more slowly.     

Investigations on the distribution of air transport traffic and CO2 emissions within the European Union

This study analyses the structure of air traffic and its distribution among the different countries in the European Union, as well as traffic with an origin or destination in non-EU countries. Data sources are Eurostat statistics and actual flight information from EUROCONTROL. Relevant variables such as the number of flights, passengers or cargo tonnes and production indicators (RPKs) are used together with fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions data. The segmentation of air traffic in terms of distance permits an assessment of air transport competition with surface transport modes.The results show a clear concentration of traffic in the five larger countries (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and UK), in terms of RPKs. In terms of distance the segment between 500 and 1000 km in the EU, has more flights, passengers, RTKs and CO₂ emissions than larger distances. On the environmental side, the distribution of CO₂ emissions within the EU Member States is presented, together with fuel efficiency parameters. In general, a direct relationship between RPKs and CO₂ emissions is observed for all countries and all distance bands. Consideration is given to the uptake of alternative fuels. Segmenting CO₂ emissions per distance band and aircraft type reveals which flights contribute the most the overall EU CO₂ emissions. Finally, projections for future CO₂ emissions are estimated, according to three different air traffic growth and biofuel introduction scenarios.     

Interplay between ethanol and electric vehicles as low carbon mobility options for passengers in the municipality of São Paulo

The Brazilian cities as well as many of the large urban centers in the world continue to expand, increasing the demand for mobility and transport, while, at the same time, the same cities are investing in greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation to avoid climate change. Brazil's urbanization rate increased from 26% in 1940 to almost 70% in 1980. During this period, the Brazilian population tripled and the urban population multiplied by seven. In 2010, the transport sector in São Paulo accounted for 71% of the total emissions released by the energy sector. Ethanol has been considered a fuel with less greenhouse gas emissions, when compared with fossil fuels. However, ethanol production would have to double to meet the expected demand. Electric vehicles (EVs) market is expanding around the world, and is also an option to reduce the transport emissions, if powered by clean electricity. To assess whether the adoption of EVs might bring more benefits than the current ethanol, we develop prospective scenarios supported by the Long-range Energy Alternatives Planning (LEAP) simulation tool, taking a bottom-up tank-to-wheel approach to consider the CO₂ emissions of car in São Paulo. The scenario considering a substitution of 25% of gasoline-powered cars by EV in 2030 showed a reduction in energy consumption and CO₂ emissions, around 15% and 26% respectively in that year in comparison with 2015. We discuss the interplay between ethanol and EV, also considering emission coefficients from life cycle analysis conducted in Brazil, and concluded EV will have higher positive impact on climate change mitigation than ethanol.     

PM,NOx and CO2 emission reductions from speed management policies in Europe

Speed reduction measures rank among the most common schemes to improve traffic safety. Recently many urban streets or entire districts were converted into 30 kph zones and in many European countries the maximum permissible speed of trucks on motorways is under discussion. However, besides contributing to traffic safety, reducing the maximum speed is also seen as beneficial to the environment due to the associated reduced fuel consumption and lower emissions. These claims however are often unsubstantiated.To gain greater insight into the impact of speed management policies on emissions, this paper examines the impact on different traffic types (urban versus highway traffic) with different modelling approaches (microscopic versus macroscopic). Emissions were calculated for specific types of vehicles with the microscopic VeTESS-tool using real-world driving cycles and compared with the results obtained using generalized Copert-like macroscopic methodologies. We analyzed the relative change in pollutants emitted before and after the implementation of a speed reduction measure for passenger cars on local roads (50–30 kph) and trucks on motorways (90–80 kph). Results indicate that emissions of most classic pollutants for the research undertaken do not rise or fall dramatically. For the passenger cars both methods indicate only minor changes to the emissions of NO_x and CO₂. For PM, the macroscopic approach predicts a moderate increase in emissions whereas microscopic results indicate a significant decrease. The effects of specific speed reduction schemes on PM emissions from trucks are ambiguous but lower maximums speed for trucks consistently result in lower emissions of CO₂ and lower fuel consumption. These results illustrate the scientific uncertainties that policy makers face when considering the implementation of speed management policies.     

Battery electric vehicles in cities: Measurement of some impacts on traffic and government revenue recovery

We are told that electric vehicles, cars in particular, will be good for the environment. But what exactly might this mean? It is true that end use emissions will be significantly reduced when we move from fossil fuels to green energy sources? Assuming that the demand for such cars, including battery electric vehicles (BEVs) in particular will grow, we can expect a significant number of such vehicles manufactured in future years. Given the potentially relatively lower cost (fewer moving parts) compared to internal combustion engine vehicles as well as the significantly lower usage costs per kilometre, we would expect a level of uptake that could impact on the performance of the road network (perhaps increased congestion and crash risk) but also a concomitant reduced use of public transport and fuel excise loss. In this paper, we apply the MetroScan modelling system in the Greater Sydney Metropolitan Area (GSMA) over the period 2021–2056 to identify the likely impact that the growth in BEV ownership and use will have on vehicle kilometres, modal shares, government revenues, levels of CO₂ emissions and other impacts. Moreover, we investigate the introduction of a BEV usage charge proposed in Australia to see what it might do to these key performance indicators and whether it can offset the adverse effects during BEV uptake such as government fuel excise revenue loss and increased congestion.     

Ex-post environmental and traffic assessment of a speed reduction strategy in Madrid's inner ring-road

Since urban traffic is a major source of CO₂ and NO_x emissions, cities play a key role averting climate change and combating air pollution. Most researchers agree on the need of designing comprehensive mitigation strategies instead of applying isolated measures. Nevertheless, it is important to understand the specific impact and scope of each measure to look for the most effective synergies among them. In 2004, the Madrid City Council launched a plan to re-design its inner ring-road to move traffic out of the city centre. For safety reasons the planned speed limit for the full-renovated South-West section was finally reduced from 90 km/h to 70 km/h. Besides contributing to traffic safety, this strategy could also be seen as positive to the environment due to the associated reduced fuel consumption and lower emissions. However, lower speed limits have lower rates of community acceptance due to its impact on average travel times at the individual level. This paper conducts an ex-post evaluation of this speed reduction strategy to explore its environmental and traffic performance impacts. The results support the thesis that, in this velocity range, lower speed limits present important opportunities for reducing GHG and air pollution in the section affected by the measure, without substantially altering traffic performance. The implementation of the new speed limit policy produces a 14.4% and 16.4% reduction in CO₂ and NO_x emissions respectively, while global travel time remains virtually constant and the saturation rate decreases slightly. Besides, this cost-effective measure reveals great potential to reduce air pollution in highly populated urban areas located next to urban highways. This work provides local policy makers and city managers with useful insights regarding potential co-benefits of traffic optimization and speed reduction management to reduce mobile source emissions in urban environments.     

Transitions to low carbon transport futures: strategic conversations from London and Delhi

Climate change is a global problem and across the world there are major difficulties being experienced in reducing carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions. The transport sector in particular is finding it difficult to reduce CO₂ emissions. This paper reports on two studies carried out by the authors in London (UK) and Delhi (India). It considers the common objectives for transport CO₂ reduction, but the very different contexts and baselines, potentials for change, and some possible synergies.Different packages of measures are selected and scenarios developed for each context which are consistent with contraction and convergence objectives. CO₂ reduction potentials are modelled and quantified by package and scenario. London is considering deep reductions on current transport CO₂ emission levels; Delhi is seeking to break the huge projected rise in transport CO₂ emissions.The scale of policy intervention required to achieve these goals is huge and there is certainly little public discussion of the magnitude of the changes required. The paper argues for a ‘strategic conversation’ at the city level, using scenario analysis, to discuss the priorities for intervention in delivering low carbon transport futures. A greater focus is required in developing participatory approaches to decision making, alongside network investments, urban planning, low emission vehicles and wider initiatives. Aspirations towards equitable target emissions may assist in setting sufficiently demanding targets. Only then is a wider awareness and ownership of potential carbon efficient transport futures likely to take place.     

Selecting sustainable electric bus powertrains using multipreference evolutionary algorithms

Constant improvement of vehicle technologies towards more efficient powertrains and reduced pollutant emissions, frequently leads to the increase of the vehicle or fuel costs, compromising its viability. Multi-objective optimization methods are commonly used to solve such problems, finding optimal trade-off solutions relatively conflicting objectives. Nevertheless, vehicle driving performance, is often disregarded from the optimization process or considered only as a fixed constraint. This may raise some issues, which are discussed in this paper: (a) vehicle dynamics are not improved, (b) trade-off optimal solutions are not distinguishable, (c) interesting solutions near constraints limits won´t be considered if constraints are not marginally relaxed.

This paper proposes a method to optimize three electric-drive vehicle options for an urban bus, a battery electric (BEV), a fuel cell hybrid (FC-HEV) and a plug-in hybrid (FC-PHEV), aiming minimum carbon footprint, maximum financial indicator and simultaneously improved driving performance (speed, acceleration, and electric range). The carbon footprint is assessed by a life cycle (LC) approach, considering the impact of the fuel production and use, and vehicle embodied materials; while the financial assessment considers the vehicle and fuel costs. The spherical pruning multi-objective differential evolution algorithm (spMODE-II) is used in the optimization, considering different preference regions within the problem constraints and objectives. The vehicle solutions optimality and suitability are compared with other multi-objective algorithm, NSGA-II.

The FC-HEV achieved the lowest LC emissions (547 g/km), and the FC-PHEV the maximum financial gain (0.19 $/km), while the BEV achieved the best trade-off of solutions.     

Analysis of CO2 emissions for island ferry services

In this study CO₂ emissions are calculated for ferries operating on both short and long range sea routes between mainland Scotland and the Orkney Isles. CO₂ emissions for land transport options connecting with the respective ferry services are also analysed. In particular the study offers a comparison of transport CO₂ emissions for long-range ferry services between Aberdeen and the Orkney Islands and short-range ferry services across the Pentland Firth. The latter involve a longer road journey for vehicles than the former. The results indicate significantly greater CO₂ emissions for long-range ferry services, despite shorter road connections. Existing public policy in this regard specifies and subsidises higher CO₂ emission ferry services operating on longer sea routes, to the disadvantage of non-subsidised short crossing services, the latter offering much lower CO₂ emission impacts (inclusive of connecting land transport CO₂ emissions). This suggests that policymakers need to focus on assessing CO₂ emission impacts when considering future tenders for subsidised ferry services. Findings also suggest that, for modest sized ferries serving islands, the optimal solution may be to use/specify the shortest possible sea routes in order to reduce CO₂ emissions from transport.     

Carbon dioxide emissions and inland container transport in Taiwan

The aim of this study is to estimate the carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions from inland container transport during the time period of 1998-2008 and predicts the trend of these emissions. The analyses show that the CO₂ emission from inland container transport in 1992 reached 1.03 million tonnes, and the figure drastically increased by 89.3% to 1.95 million tonnes in 2008. Using a multiple regression model, gross domestic product (GDP) and oil price are found to be the key drivers for CO₂ emission. The CO₂ mitigation strategies are discussed in the policy suggestions given that Taiwan is warming at twice global average rate.     

Potential for electric vehicle adoption in Australia

Data from the New South Wales (NSW) Household Travel Survey (2014/15 NSW, T. f. (2014/15, 9/15/2016). SA3 Household Travel Survey (HTS). Retrieved from https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B12S3-OIR0hOT3oyYzJnMVp1UWs [Google Scholar]) was analyzed to determine the trip-by-trip range of automobile travel in NSW. The results show that 88% of trips were less than 30?km, which could readily be provided by electric vehicles, consuming a total of 18?GWh in electrical energy per weekday. Even if all electric vehicles were recharged from non-renewable coal-fired power plants, the greater efficiency of electric vehicles would result in a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions across NSW by 18% carbon dioxide equivalent (CO_2(eq))_. Additionally, we mapped the average state of charge distribution of the electric vehicles at key times during the day, indicating the maximum net load (for recharging) and/or available energy (for vehicle-to-grid services) across NSW. The results are consistent with other international studies and demonstrate the potential for wide scale electric vehicles adoption in Australia.     

Dynamic linkages between tourism transportation expenditures,carbon dioxide emission,energy consumption and growth factors: evidence from the transition economies

Tourism transport profoundly affects economic growth, energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions. This study is an attempt to examine the impact of international tourism transportation expenditures, energy demand, foreign direct investment inflows, trade openness and urban population on carbon dioxide emission and per capita income for the panel of 11 transition Economies, over the period of 1995–2013. The results show that per capita income escalates the carbon dioxide emission (CO₂), which deteriorates the natural environment. International tourism receipts and international tourism expenditures for travel items are associated with the intensifying CO₂ emission and per capita income in the region. The study confirmed the energy-led emissions, FDI-led emissions, FDI-led growth, income-led emissions, income-led energy demand, trade-led growth and trade-led energy demand. The causality results further substantiate the the tourism-led growth and FDI hypothesis in the region. Finally, the variance decomposition analysis confirmed the following results, that is, (i) per capita income is the contributor that least influences CO₂ emissions, (ii) urban population influences per capita income and (iii) international tourism transportation expenditures will influence CO₂ emissions and per capita income for the next 10-year period.     

Introducing a transport carbon dioxide emissions vulnerability index for the Greater Dublin Area

Energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions from the transport sector have continued to rise, adding to growing concerns about the environmental impacts caused by transport systems and related land-use patterns. The transport sector in Ireland is a significant fuel consumer, accounting for 36% (5771 kTOE3) of Ireland’s primary energy demand in 2007. The sector was responsible for 36% (17,014 kt5 CO₂) of Ireland’s energy-related CO₂ emissions, higher than any other sector. Energy use in the transport sector grew by 181% (6.3% per annum on average) between 1990 and 2007. A key characteristic that distinguishes energy use in transport is the almost total dependence on imported oil as a fuel – over 99%, EPA (2009).Given the levels and growth of energy demand in transport, there is a clear imperative for policymakers to develop and implement measures and programmes that maximise energy efficiency and renewable-energy penetration. In this paper we develop a transport carbon dioxide emissions vulnerability index, using the Census of Population of Ireland 2006 Place of Work – Census of Anonymised Records (POWCAR) Dataset. The transport carbon dioxide emissions vulnerability index will be developed for the Greater Dublin Area to represent spatially in terms of transport carbon emissions the regional differentiations in commuting distances and modal shares. The results of this research can then be used to assess the transport carbon dioxide emissions of future development plans and therefore allow greater transport sustainability to be achieved through improved design of the location and form of major new development.     

Profiling road transport activity: Emissions from 2000 to 2005 in Ireland using national car test data

This work describes a methodology for determining the average vehicle kilometres travelled by the private national car fleet in Ireland and estimating the disaggregated CO₂ and NO_x emissions from private vehicles in the Irish road transport sector for the period 2000–2005 using national car test records. The developed methodology facilitates the calculation of greatly improved estimates for vehicle kilometres under a range of constraint variables and thereby enables the disaggregated analysis of specific vehicle fleet groups and their associated activity patterns to support evidence-based policy development. The results indicate that while older vehicles are contributing significantly to car NO_x emissions; newer cars produce a higher share of CO₂ emissions than older cars in the vehicle fleet.     

Fair profit contract for a carrier collaboration framework in a green hub network under soft time-windows: Dual lexicographic max–min approach

This paper models a novel and practical bi-objective hub-location problem under a centralized carrier collaboration framework between one holding company and multiple carriers. The holding company first establishes a hub-and-spoke network in order to locate p hubs and to assign the center nodes to the located hubs. Then, it allocates the transportation routes of the hub network to the carriers. In contrast, the carriers should select an appropriate vehicle type to serve the transportation requests in a green hub network. The carriers are also able to meet the transportation requests within a certain time-window based on a soft time-window mechanism. Moreover, aiming to emphasize green transportation, a vehicle emission model is used to take into account CO₂ emissions of the vehicles where the fuel consumption is a function of speed level. Aiming to identify a win–win deal between the holding company and the carriers, a dual lexicographic max–min (LMM) approach is used in order to optimize their profits in a fair way. Finally, some numerical experiments are presented to demonstrate the applicability of the proposed methodology. The computational results show that not only the holding company and the carriers can better generate a fair profit contract among themselves using the LMM approach, but also both can obtain more profit in the worst case for their businesses rather than using the max–min approach. In addition, sensitivity analyses show that increasing the size of the soft time-window leads to a reduction in the delivery schedule violations, while results in raising the total profit. Moreover, the tax cost of fuel consumption as well as the number of potential vehicles has a substantial impact on both the fuel consumption and carrier’s profit.