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Measure of accessibility to postal services in France: A potential spatial accessibility approach applied in an urban region

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  • Aurélie Mercier
  • Stéphanie Souche‐Le Corvec
  • Nicolas Ovtracht

Abstract

In a context where the demand and supply of mail and parcel delivery services are undergoing major changes due to the widespread use of the Internet and digital communications, this paper focuses on the accessibility of postal services through the physical retail network. The accessibility constraints applied to the outlets network of Le Groupe La Poste (the French postal operator responsible for the universal postal service and three other services of general economic interest) are based on a “simplified” approach that considers accessibility only in terms of time or distance‐time. This paper proposes to measure potential spatial accessibility by applying postal supply and potential demand dimensions using a two‐step floating catchment area (2SFCA) analysis. Based on an equilibrium between supply and demand through distance function, this method, which is often used in studies of the accessibility of health services, is transposed and adapted into the field of postal activities. It aims to measure accessibility by taking into account the population and population/provider ratio, considering standard postal services provided at service points. While until recently the 2SFCA methods were mostly applied in healthcare contexts, some applications have been developed in non‐health‐related services over the last decade. This paper proposes an original contribution to analysing variations in the accessibility of postal services. Referring to the “primary postal services” (sales of stamps, letters or parcels postage, remittance of postal items, and so on), it outlines the conditions that activities (or services) must satisfy in order to use the floating catchment area method. En un contexto en que la demanda y la oferta de servicios de correo y de entrega de paquetes están experimentando grandes cambios debido al uso generalizado de Internet y las comunicaciones digitales, este artículo se centra en la accesibilidad de los servicios postales a través de la red física de venta al por menor. Las limitaciones de accesibilidad de la red de puntos de servicio de Le Groupe La Poste (el operador postal francés responsable del servicio postal universal y otros tres servicios más de interés económico general) se basan en un enfoque “simplificado”, que considera la accesibilidad sólo en términos de tiempo o distancia. Este artículo propone medir la accesibilidad espacial potencial aplicando las dimensiones de la oferta existente y la demanda potencial de servicios postales mediante un análisis de zona de captación flotante en dos etapas (2SFCA, por sus siglas en inglés). Con base en un equilibrio entre la oferta y la demanda mediante la función de distancia, este método, que se utiliza a menudo en estudios sobre la accesibilidad de los servicios de salud, se ha transpuesto y adaptado al ámbito de las actividades postales. El objetivo fue medir la accesibilidad, teniendo en cuenta la población y la relación población/proveedor y considerando los servicios postales estándar que se prestan en los puntos de servicio. Si bien hasta hace poco los métodos de 2SFCA se aplicaban principalmente en contextos de atención de la salud, en la última década se han desarrollado algunas aplicaciones en servicios no relacionados con la salud. En este documento se propone una contribución original al análisis de la variabilidad en la accesibilidad de los servicios postales. En relación con los “servicios postales primarios” (venta de sellos, franqueo de cartas o paquetes, envío de artículos postales, etc.), el artículo esboza las condiciones que deben cumplir las actividades (o servicios) para poder utilizar el método de la zona de captación flotante. インターネットやデジタル通信の普及により、郵便物の配送サービスの需要と供給が大きく変化していることから、本稿では、物理的な小売ネットワークを介した郵便サービスのアクセシビリティに焦点を当てた。Le Groupe La Poste (郵便サービス全体とそれ以外の3つの一般的経済利益(general economic interest)を有するサービスを提供するフランスの郵便事業者)の販売ネットワークのアクセシビリティ制約は、時間または距離時間 (distance‐time)の観点からのみアクセシビリティを考慮した「簡易」なアプローチに基づいている。本稿は、two‐step floating catchment area(2SFCA)法による分析を用いて、郵便の供給と潜在的需要をディメンションとして適用することにより、潜在的な空間アクセシビリティの測定を提案する。この分析法は、保健医療サービスのアクセシビリティの研究に使用されることが多いが、距離関数による需要と供給の均衡に基づいて、郵便事業の分野に応用されている。これは、サービスポイントで提供される標準的な郵便サービスを考慮し、人口と人口/供給者比を考慮に入れてアクセシビリティを測定することを目的としている。最近まで、2SFCA法は主に保健医療に関わる分野で用いられていたが、この10年間で、保健医療以外のサービスへの応用方法が開発されている。本稿は、郵便サービスのアクセシビリティの変動の分析研究の独自の成果を提示するものである。「主要な郵便サービス」(切手、手紙または小包の郵便料金、郵便為替など)に言及しながら、floating catchment area法を使用するために事業活動 (またはサービス)が満たす必要がある条件の概要を説明する。

Suggested Citation

  • Aurélie Mercier & Stéphanie Souche‐Le Corvec & Nicolas Ovtracht, 2021. "Measure of accessibility to postal services in France: A potential spatial accessibility approach applied in an urban region," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 100(1), pages 227-249, February.
  • Handle: RePEc:bla:presci:v:100:y:2021:i:1:p:227-249
    DOI: 10.1111/pirs.12564
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