An analytical model is developed to assign regional freight across a multimodal highway and railway network using geographic information systems. As part of the regional planning process, the model is an iterative procedure that assigns multimodal freight traffic to the network to achieve overall network optimum. The procedure integrates optimization programming with traffic assignment, conside...

Introduction In recent years there have been major changes in the composition of cargo to the point where, in Europe, semi-finished products (e.g. car parts) and finished goods represent the greatest transport demand. This type of cargo is typically of lower density and higher value (LDHV) than previous goods and requires faster and more reliable transportation. Currently, LDHV goods are predom...

92410 Document complet disponible sur OLIS dans son format d'origine Complete document available on OLIS in its original format CEMT/CM(2000)19/FINAL 2 KEY ISSUES FOR DEBATE: The fundamental objective of regulatory reform for freight rail services is twofold: improvement of efficiency; and improvement of competitiveness in freight markets. Regulatory reform is intimately linked to structural re...

In this article we estimate external costs for four representative types of freight trains. For each type of freight train, we estimate three general types of external costs and compare them with the private costs experienced by railroad companies. The general types of external costs include: accidents (fatalities, injuries, and property damage); emissions (air pollution and greenhouse gases); ...

The identification of infrastructure critical to regional rail freight operations has many implications. Primarily, such a process informs policy-makers and directs funding to areas of high importance and/or greatest need. For the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP), analysts at Cambridge Systematics developed an infrastructure identification process designed to evaluate which key a...

Within the framework of the promotion of the environmental friendly modes, the European Commission has launched a number of research projects aiming at evaluating technical and organisational innovations that can improve the performance of the freight transport operations in the rail sector. The scope of this paper is to present a modelling approach focusing on the comparative evaluation of con...

The Staggers Rail Act of 1980 is widely perceived to have deregulated the U.S. freight rail industry. Yet substantial rail traffic remains potentially subject to regulatory rate intervention, and in the Post-Staggers era regulators have developed a detailed and expanding regulatory framework for rail shipments. This regulatory framework embodies elements of traditional public utility regulation...

An increased role for rail freight is an objective of the British government. Limited growth potential exists in rail’s traditional bulk markets, so more non-bulk volume is needed. This paper focuses on non-bulk rail freight activity in Britain, through deskbased research and company interviews. It considers changes in both the intermodal and traditional less-than-trainload (LTL) markets over t...

The North American freight railroad network is projected to experience rising transportation demand in the coming decades, leading to increased congestion on many rail lines. Capacity is further strained by increased interest in increasing the speed and frequency of passenger service on shared rail corridors. Since passenger trains in North America predominantly operate on corridors where freig...

In rail freight operation, freight cars need to be separated and reformed into new trains at hump yards. The classification procedure is complex and hump yards constitute bottlenecks in the rail freight network, often causing outbound trains to be delayed. One of the problems is that planning for the allocation of tracks at hump yards is difficult, given that the planner has limited resources (...