A Modified Artificial Bee Colony Algorithm with a Load-Dependent Fuel Model for the Bi-Objective Green Capacitated Vehicle Routing Problem

Authors

  • Hao Yang School of Mathematics and Computer Science, Panzhihua University, Panzhihua, China https://orcid.org/0009-0008-0129-1969
  • Jie Yang Middle School Affiliated to Chengdu University, Chengdu, China

Keywords:

artificial bee colony, capacitated vehicle routing problem, fuel consumption, green vehicle routing, bi-objective optimization

Abstract

The capacitated vehicle routing problem (CVRP) conventionally minimizes total travel distance, yet a distance-minimal route need not minimize fuel. As fuel rate rises with payload, so demand distribution across arcs matters even at fixed total distance. To address this gap, this study formulates a bi-objective green CVRP minimizing total distance and fuel under an arc-wise fuel rate that increases linearly with vehicle load, solved by an improved artificial bee colony algorithm (IABC). The IABC combines a scattered construction-based population, a dual-group employed-bee neighbourhood, and a forward-insertion scout, with an iteration-dependent capacity penalty in a normalized weighted-sum fitness, one tunable weight traces the distance–fuel trade-off. Across twelve Augerat instances (twelve runs each), the IABC matches the best-known distance on four, reduces mean fuel by 3.50% versus the Clarke–Wright savings baseline, and yields only capacity-feasible routes. On P-n16-k8, a two-stage lexicographic mixed-integer program certifies the distance-then-fuel optimum (450 km, 116.73 L), attained exactly by the IABC. Non-parametric tests rank the IABC above standard ABC, a genetic algorithm, and the savings heuristic on both objectives. Ablation attributes the gain to the load-aware objective, and the saving persists under ±20% fuel-coefficient perturbations, supporting robust green route planning.

References

[1] G. B. Dantzig and J. H. Ramser, The truck dispatching problem, Management Science, 6, 1959, 80–91.

[2] M. Asghari and S. M. J. Mirzapour Al-e-hashem, Green vehicle routing problem: A state-of-the-art review, International Journal of Production Economics, 232, 2021, 107987.

[3] R. Moghdani, K. Salimifard, E. Demir and A. Benyettou, The green vehicle routing problem: A systematic literature review, Journal of Cleaner Production, 280, 2021, 124565.

[4] T. Bektaş and G. Laporte, The pollution-routing problem, Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, 45, 2011, 1232–1250.

[5] Y. Xiao, Q. Zhao, I. Kaku and Y. Xu, Development of a fuel consumption optimization model for the capacitated vehicle routing problem, Computers & Operations Research, 39, 2012, 1419–1431.

[6] E. Demir, T. Bektaş and G. Laporte, A review of recent research on green road freight transportation, European Journal of Operational Research, 237, 2014, 775–793.

[7] L. Pradenas, B. Oportus and V. Parada, Mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions in vehicle routing problems with backhauling, Expert Systems with Applications, 40, 2013, 2985–2993.

[8] D. Karaboga, An idea based on honey bee swarm for numerical optimization, Technical Report TR06, Erciyes University, Engineering Faculty, Computer Engineering Department, Kayseri, Turkey, 2005.

[9] W. Y. Szeto, Y. Wu and S. C. Ho, An artificial bee colony algorithm for the capacitated vehicle routing problem, European Journal of Operational Research, 215, 2011, 126–135.

[10] G. Clarke and J. W. Wright, Scheduling of vehicles from a central depot to a number of delivery points, Operations Research, 12, 1964, 568–581.

[11] D. Karaboga and B. Basturk, On the performance of artificial bee colony (ABC) algorithm, Applied Soft Computing, 8, 2008, 687–697.

[12] P. Ji and Y. Wu, An improved artificial bee colony algorithm for the capacitated vehicle routing problem with time-dependent travel times, Proceedings of the 10th International Symposium on Operations Research and Its Applications (ISORA 2011), Dunhuang, China, 2011, 75–82.

[13] Y. Guo, Y. Huang, S. Ge, Y. Zhang, E. Jiang, B. Cheng and S. Yang, Low-carbon routing based on improved artificial bee colony algorithm for electric trackless rubber-tyred vehicles, Complex System Modeling and Simulation, 3, 2023, 169–190.

[14] M. Figliozzi, Vehicle routing problem for emissions minimization, Transportation Research Record, 2197, 2010, 1–7.

[15] H. W. Kopfer and J. Schönberger, Reducing greenhouse gas emissions of a heterogeneous vehicle fleet, Flexible Services and Manufacturing Journal, 26, 2014, 511–531.

[16] J. Zhang, Y. Zhao, W. Xue and J. Li, Vehicle routing problem with fuel consumption and carbon emission, International Journal of Production Economics, 170, 2015, 234–242.

[17] E. Marrekchi, W. Besbes, D. Dhouib and E. Demir, A review of recent advances in the operations research literature on the green routing problem and its variants, Annals of Operations Research, 304, 2021, 529–574.

[18] K. Deb, A. Pratap, S. Agarwal and T. Meyarivan, A fast and elitist multiobjective genetic algorithm: NSGA-II, IEEE Transactions on Evolutionary Computation, 6, 2002, 182–197.

[19] R. S. Kumar, K. Kondapaneni, V. Dixit, A. Goswami, L. S. Thakur and M. K. Tiwari, Multi-objective modeling of production and pollution routing problem with time window: A self-learning particle swarm optimization approach, Computers & Industrial Engineering, 99, 2016, 409–421.

[20] Z. Xu, A. Elomri, S. Pokharel and F. Mutlu, A model for capacitated green vehicle routing problem with the time-varying vehicle speed and soft time windows, Computers & Industrial Engineering, 137, 2019, 106011.

[21] S. Fatemi-Anaraki, M. Mokhtarzadeh, M. Rabbani and D. Abdolhamidi, A hybrid of K-means and genetic algorithm to solve a bi-objective green delivery and pick-up problem, Journal of Industrial and Production Engineering, 39, 2022, 146–157.

[22] P. Augerat, Approche Polyédrale Du Problème De Tournées De Véhicules, Ph.D. Dissertation, Institut National Polytechnique de Grenoble, Grenoble, France, 1995.

[23] J. Derrac, S. García, D. Molina and F. Herrera, A practical tutorial on the use of nonparametric statistical tests as a methodology for comparing evolutionary and swarm intelligence algorithms, Swarm and Evolutionary Computation, 1, 2011, 3–9.

[24] S. García, A. Fernandez, J. Luengo and F. Herrera, Advanced nonparametric tests for multiple comparisons in the design of experiments in computational intelligence and data mining: Experimental analysis of power, Information Sciences, 180, 2010, 2044–2064.

[25] C. Boonmee, K. Akarawongsapat, W. Wisittipanich, W. Chattinnawat and K. Khwanngern, Differential evolution for cleft lip and/or cleft palate patient treatment scheduling problems: A northern Thailand hospital case study, Annals of Operations Research, 335, 2024, 563–595.

[26] C. Boonmee, P. Lertsrimongkol and M. Arimura, Mathematical model for special capacitated vehicle routing problem considering environmental factors, Applications of Modelling and Simulation, 10, 2026, 38–49.

[27] F. Morsidi, An intensification-enhanced adaptive hybrid memetic algorithm for the multi-depot vehicle routing problem with time windows, Applications of Modelling and Simulation, 10, 2026, 50–63.

Downloads

Published

19-10-2026

How to Cite

Yang, H., & Yang, J. (2026). A Modified Artificial Bee Colony Algorithm with a Load-Dependent Fuel Model for the Bi-Objective Green Capacitated Vehicle Routing Problem. Applications of Modelling and Simulation, 10, 253–264. Retrieved from https://arqiipubl.com/ojs/index.php/AMS_Journal/article/view/1591

Issue

Section

Articles