Photo: Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue, 2018.
The curb can be the object of contention for deliveries, even in suburban areas, which can lead to its constrained usage. In the above photo, the docking bay of a retail outlet was not well designed because no space was left for the parking of delivery vehicles. This was probably on purpose as it was judged that the loss of real estate was not worth the design of an appropriate docking bay. Parking impairments were externalized to the curb.
Since the store generates a lot of inventory turnover (a drugstore selling household goods), frequent deliveries are required. In this case, consolidation was done in the smallest load that could be carried by a semi-truck; a 40-foot trailer. With this configuration and length, the semi-truck completely blocks the sidewalk and half the street for about the 10-15 minutes it takes for the delivery. Even a regular delivery van would completely block the sidewalk. Since local circulation is light, this type of activity does not impair it in a significant manner. If the density was higher, such infringement would not be tolerated.