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The current shortage of road and parking capacity to accommodate freight traffic poses a significant challenge in cities. This study develops and analyzes alternative traffic management strategies for last-mile delivery operations. Three alternative implementations of parking guidance involving allocating commercial vehicles to dedicated loading/unloading bays are investigated alongside a vehicle-specific geofence strategy. Methodologically, an agent-based model framework is employed to reproduce the interactions among (parking and cruising) carriers, the surrounding traffic, and a traffic controller. An efficient metaheuristic is integrated with simulation to address the corresponding optimization. The effectiveness of the strategies in reducing traffic congestion and other externalities varies depending on the level and configuration of freight demand. Among the parking guidance strategies, those weighing more on carriers’ convenience mitigate potential risks of equity and acceptability issues but at the cost of an efficiency loss. Geofencing is less problematic due to the minor operational modifications, offering comparable traffic performance improvement for low and medium demand levels.

The global deployment of new digital technologies, such as fifth-generation broadband, Internet of Things, smart objects, and AI, is paving the way for new high-performance digital platforms. These platforms are capable of connecting both people and “things” at high speeds and near-zero latency, taking on the nature of digital “ultra-platforms”. However, the increased reach (i.e., more agents interacting across the platform) and responsiveness (i.e., more opportunities for agents to respond and adapt to each, as they interact) of digital “ultra-platforms” create an unprecedented level of complexity. In this article, we use an agent-based simulation model to study the different types of risks that arise from this increased level of complexity. Three different risks are identified that can hinder a platform's ability to create value. We refer to these risks as the digital black swan, the stacked deck, and push back. Each risk is considered and analyzed from the perspective of specific stakeholders who may be affected by platform externalities. These include the platform owner, platform users, and others who may have no direct interest in the platform. In this way, the article aims to contribute to the literature on digital platform management by focusing on challenges that are emerging from new digital technologies yet have thus far received little attention from either scholars or managers.