Urban Freight Consolidation Model for Post-Hauler Planning

Freight transportation in urban areas has increased significantly in a shorter period due to the widespread use of e-commerce, fast delivery, and population growth. Recently, a noticeable government initiative aimed at creating an effective, acceptable, and sustainable city logistics policy. This paper examines freight consolidation as a transportation strategy for optimizing last-mile delivery costs. Freight consolidation involves combining smaller shipments from various origins into a single, larger shipment for more efficient transportation to a common destination. This approach is particularly beneficial for last-mile delivery, where frequent deliveries of smaller quantities are frequently visible. Finally, we provide an illustrative example targeting urban freight stakeholders for practicing possible consolidation methodology. The result in the illustrative example shows that freight with 3-day consolidation, despite the delay penalty, is cheaper than daily shipping, and both are cheaper than 2-day consolidated shipping. The study will benefit urban businesses and freight services.

Making Data-Driven Transportation Decisions for Freight Operations

Using Louisiana’s Interstate system, this paper aims to demonstrate how data can be used to evaluate freight movement reliability, economy, and safety of truck freight operations to improve decision-making. Data mainly from the National Performance Management Research Data Set (NPMRDS) and the Louisiana Crash Database were used to analyze Truck Travel Time Reliability Index, commercial vehicle User Delay Costs, and commercial vehicle safety. The results indicate that while Louisiana’s Interstate system remained reliable over the years, some segments were found to be unreliable, which were annually less than 12% of the state’s Interstate system mileage. The User Delay Costs by commercial vehicles on these unreliable segments were, on average, 65.45% of the User Delay Cost by all vehicles on the Interstate highway system between 2016 and 2019, 53.10% between 2020 and 2021, and 70.36% in 2022, which are considerably high. These disproportionate ratios indicate the economic impact of the unreliability of the Interstate system on commercial vehicle operations. Additionally, though the annual crash frequencies remained relatively constant, an increasing proportion of commercial vehicles are involved in crashes, with segments (mileposts) that have high crash frequencies seeming to correspond with locations with recurring congestion on the Interstate highway system. The study highlights the potential of using data to identify areas that need improvement in transportation systems to support better decision-making.

Accessibility Measures in Modal Choice Models: A Proof of Concept Applied to Freight Transport

Modal choice models applied to interregional or international freight transportation network models are often based on rather coarse origin-destination matrices, containing annual transported tonnages between (sub)regions, for instance. Generally, only basic (sometimes constructed) independent variables (transportation costs or transit times) are used because other variables such as shipment sizes, service frequencies, etc. are not available. Using origin-destination matrices and an assignment model, it is also possible to compute spatial accessibility measures that can further be used as additional explanatory variables. Indeed, several published studies have identified network accessibility as an important element in the mode-choice decision. This paper also shows that the inclusion of an accessibility measure in the utility functions of a logit model substantially improves the performance of a transportation network model, both in the modal choice and the assignment levels of the classical four-step model. Consequently, the assignment of the estimated modal demands results in more accurate estimated traffic on the networks. The model presented in this paper is to be considered as a proof of concept because its workflow should further be streamlined to make it easily useable by modelers.

Discussion on the Logistics Construction of Railway Container Freight Stations

From the perspective of logistics, the article discusses some essential functions and service functions of railway container freight stations. Then it plans the construction of the logistics operation system of container freight stations, and designs five main operating yards such as deconsolidation and groupage .yard, storage and distribution yard, container receiving-departure yard, container stack yard, and special cargo yard. The management pattern is discussed under the direction of modern business management theory. The ideas presented in this article is significant to the construction of railway container freight stations.

International Freight Forwarding Services Network in the Yangtze River Delta, 2005–2015: Patterns and Mechanisms

This study examined the spatio-temporal trajectories of the international freight forwarding service(IFFS) in the Yangtze River Delta(YRD) and explored the driving mechanisms of the service. Based on a bipartite network projection from an IFFS firm-city data source, we mapped three IFFS networks in the YRD in 2005, 2010, and 2015. A range of statistical indicators were used to explore changes in the spatial patterns of the three networks. The underlying influence of marketization, globalization, decentralization, and integration was then explored. It was found that the connections between Shanghai and other nodal cities formed the backbones of these networks. The effects of a city's administrative level and provincial administrative borders were generally obvious. We found several specific spatial patterns associated with IFFS. For example, the four non-administrative centers of Ningbo, Suzhou, Lianyungang, and Nantong were the most connected cities and played the role of gateway cities. Furthermore, remarkable regional equalities were found regarding a city's IFFS network provision, with notable examples in the weakly connected areas of northern Jiangsu and southwestern Zhejiang. Finally, an analysis of the driving mechanisms demonstrated that IFFS network changes were highly sensitive to the influences of marketization and globalization, while regional integration played a lesser role in driving changes in IFFS networks.

Numerical optimisation and experimental validation of divided rail freight brake disc crown

In this study, numerical optimisation and experimental validation of a divided rail freight brake disc crown made of grey cast iron EN-GJL-250 is presented.The analysed brake disc is used in rail freight wagons and possesses a load capacity of 22.5 tons per axle. Two of the divided rail freight brake discs are mounted on each axle.With the aid of numerical analysis, the thermal dissipation properties of the brake disc were optimised and ventilation losses were reduced, and the numerical results were compared with experimental results. A one-way fluid–structure interaction analysis was performed. A computational fluid dynamic model of a divided rail freight brake disc, used to predict air flow properties and heat convection, was incorporated into a finite element model of the disc and used to evaluate the temperature of the disc. A numerical parametrical optimisation of cooling ribs of the brake disc was also performed, and novel optimised cooling ribs were developed. A transient thermal numerical analysis of the brake disc was validated using temperature measurements obtained during a braking test on a test bench. The ventilation losses of the brake disc were measured on a test bench specifically designed for the task, and the losses were compared to the simulation results. The experimentally obtained ventilation losses and temperature measurements compared favourably with the simulation results, confirming that this type of simulation process may be confidently applied in the future. Through systematic optimisation of the divided rail freight brake disc, ventilation losses were reduced by 37% and the mass was reduced by 21%, resulting in better thermal performance that will bring with it substantial energy savings.

Intermodal Freight Network Design for Transport of Perishable Products

The amount of perishable products transported via the existing intermodal freight networks has significantly increased over the last years. Perishable products tend to decay due to a wide range of external factors. Supply chain operations mismanagement causes waste of substantial volumes of perishable products every year. The heretofore proposed mathematical models optimize certain supply chain processes and reduce decay of perishable products, but primarily deal with local production, inventory, distribution, and retailing of perishable products. However, significant quantities of perishable products are delivered from different continents, which shall increase the total transportation time and decay potential of perishable products as compared to local deliveries. This paper proposes a novel optimization model to design the intermodal freight network for both local and long-haul deliveries of perishable products. The objective of the model aims to minimize the total cost associated with transportation and decay of perishable products. A set of piecewise approximations are applied to linearize the non-linear decay function for each perishable product type. CPLEX is used to solve the problem. Comprehensive numerical experiments are conducted using the intermodal freight network for import of the seafood perishable products to the United States to draw important managerial insights. Results demonstrate that increasing product decay cost may significantly change the design of intermodal freight network for transport of perishable products, cause modal shifts and affect the total transportation time and associated costs.

The Effects of Freight Vibrations on Slope Stability along the SH35, Bay of Plenty East, New Zealand

State Highway 35 (SH35) connects Opotiki to Gisborne along the Raukumara Peninsula in the North Island, New Zealand. This corridor passes through an area which is prone to landslides, especially during the wet season. This, in turn, influences the traffic and has detrimental effects to the local economy, as it is dependent mainly on tourism and commercial transportation by road. This paper will focus on the landslides which occurred between June and September 2018, within the Bay of Plenty East on the north side of the Raukumara Peninsula. The paper will analyze both the nature and triggering mechanisms behind these landslides. As the landslides occur in the wet season, rainfall has been commonly considered the main trigger. However, the paper will argue that vehicle vibrations have been contributing to the instability of the slopes within the Bay of Plenty East. This paper will be instrumental in developing future transportation strategies in this part of the North Island.

The Empirical Analysis of the Relationship between our Country Steel Price Index and the International Iron ore Freight Rate

The use of econometric methods to analyze the relationship between our country steel price index and the international iron ore freight rate,time series stationarity test,cointegration test,Granger test of causality and model parameter estimation tools use,find that there is Granger causality between our country steel price index and the international iron ore freight rate,China' s steel price fluctuations to some extent affect the international iron ore freight.

Calibration and Validation of Strategic Freight Transportation Planning Models with Limited Information

Strategic transportation network models are often used as support tools in the framework of decisions to be taken at the policy level, such as the Trans-European Network projects. These models are mostly setup using aggregated or limited data. If their calibration is regularly mentioned in the literature, their validation is barely discussed. In this paper, several modal choice model specifications that make only use of explanatory variables available at the network level are described and applied to a large scale case. A validation exercise is performed at three levels of aggregation. The paper is designed from a strategic transport planning perspective, and does not present new modal choice formulations or assignment procedures. Its main added value is the focus on calibration and validation considerations. Despite the limited explanatory information used, the global performance of the best models can be considered as satisfactory. However, the quality of the models varies from mode to mode, the use of railway transport being the most difficult to predict without more specific input.

An Algorithm for the Optimal Matching Speeds of Pass enger and Freight Trains in Mixed Operations

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A Freight Mode Choice Analysis Using a Binary Logit Model and GIS: The Case of Cereal Grains Transportation in the United States

Mode choice is important in shipping commodities efficiently. This paper develops a binary logit model and a regression model to study the cereal grains movement by truck and rail in the United States using the publically available Freight Analysis Framework (FAF2.2) database and U.S. highway and networks and TransCAD, a geographic information system with strong transportation modeling capabilities. The binary logit model and the regression model both use the same set of generic variables, including mode split probability, commodity weight, value, network travel time, and fuel cost. The results show that both the binary logit and regression models perform well for cereal grains transportation in the United States, with the binary logit model yielding overall better estimates with respect to the observed truck and rail mode splits. The two models can be used to study other commodities between two modes and may produce better results if more mode specific variables are used.

Estimating Elasticities for Freight Transport Using a Network Model: An Applied Methodological Framework

This paper presents a general framework that can be used to estimate direct and cross elasticities for freight transport using a network model. This methodology combines operational research (network assignments in a geographical information system) with more classical econometrics (multinomial logit choice models). The application of the method to a real-world case is illustrated by a simple model that relies on the generalized cost of transport as the only explanatory variable in the utility function. The methodological framework allows, however, for the implementation of more complex functions. Beside the generalized cost functions for road, rail and inland waterways transport, the network model needs origin-destination matrixes and digitized networks. They are imported from ETIS Plus, a European transport policy information system. A set of direct and cross elasticities is presented. The estimated values are obtained using two methods: the first computes standard elasticities, while the second estimates arc elasticities. Figures are presented for Europe and for a large region around the Benelux countries, where more competition exists between the three modes of interest.

Optimization Model of Regional Comprehensive Freight Hub Location

An optimization model for the regional comprehensive freight hub location problem was built up from the viewpoint of the minimum cost of freight system. The construction method for regional comprehensive intermodal freight network was put forward, and three constraints of the reasonable and feasible path of the intermodal transport, i. e. , reasonable sequence, reasonable freight distance, and reasonable conversion times, were proposed according to the general concepts of the intermodal freight. Then the method for solving the model was given based on the super network and genetic algorithm. Finally, the model and the solution were verified by case study.

A review on design and testing methodologies of modern freight train draft gear system

Rolling stock connection systems are key to running longer and heavier trains as they provide both the connections of vehicles and the damping,providing the longitudinal suspension of the train.This paper focuses on the evolution of both connection and stiffness damping systems.Focus is on freight rolling stock,but passenger draw gears are also examined.It was found that connection systems have evolved from the buff and chain system used in the pioneer railways of the 1800s to the modern auto-coupler connection systems that are in-service worldwide today.Refined versions of the buff and chain coupling are,however,still in use in the EU,UK,South America and India.A wide range of auto-coupler systems are currently utilised,but the AAR coupler(Janney coupler)remains the most popular.A further variation that persists is the SA3 coupler(improved Wilson coupler)which is an alternative auto-coupler design used mainly throughout the former Soviet Union.Restricting the review to auto-coupler systems allowed the paper to focus on draft gears which revealed polymer,polymer-friction,steel spring-friction,hydraulic draft gears and sliding sill cushioning systems.Along with the single compressive draft gear units balanced and floating plate configurations are also presented.Typical draft gear acceptance standards are presented along with modelling that was included to aid in presentation of the functional characteristics of draft gears.

Using OD Estimation Techniques to Determine Freight Factors in a Medium Sized Community

Developing an understanding of the socio-economic factors that can be used to generate truck trip productions and attractions in small and medium sized communities can be used to improve travel models and provide better information upon which infrastructure decisions are made. Unfortunately, it is difficult to collect this data in a timely, cost-effective manner. This paper presents a methodology that uses matrix estimation techniques from existing traffic counts to develop origin/destination pairs that can be used to statistically develop truck trip generation models. A case study is presented and a model is presented for one smaller urban community.

Research on Optimization of Freight Train ATO Based on Elite Competition Multi-Objective Particle Swarm Optimization

In view of the complex problems that freight train ATO (automatic train operation) needs to comprehensively consider punctuality, energy saving and safety, a dynamics model of the freight train operation process is established based on the safety and the freight train dynamics model in the process of its operation. The algorithm of combining elite competition strategy with multi-objective particle swarm optimization technology is introduced, and the winning particles are obtained through the competition between two elite particles to guide the update of other particles, so as to balance the convergence and distribution of multi-objective particle swarm optimization. The performance comparison experimental results verify the superiority of the proposed algorithm. The simulation experiments of the actual line verify the feasibility of the model and the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.

Models for Ordering Multiple Products Subject to Multiple Constraints, Quantity and Freight Discounts

One of the most important responsibilities of a supply chain manager is to decide “how much” (or “many”) of inventory items to order and how to transport them. This paper presents four mixed-integer linear programming models to help supply chain managers make these decisions for multiple products subject to multiple constraints when suppliers offer quantity discounts and shippers offer freight discounts. Each model deals with one of the possible combinations of all-units, incremental quantity discounts, all-weight and incremental freight discounts. The models are based on a piecewise linear approximation of the number of orders function. They allow any number of linear constraints and determine if independent or common (fixed) cycle ordering has a lower total cost. Results of computational experiments on an example problem are also presented.

Highway Freight Can Be Permitted to Foreign Wholly-Funded Enterprises

Chang Chunxian, deputy minister invested or donated by a foreign coun-of communications said recently

Empirical Analysis of Multiple-Criteria Decision-Making (Mcdm) Process for Freight Transportation Mode Selection

In Ghana, freight transport is growing continuously every year due to its location and business processes. However, road transport carries 86% of freight despite its numerous negative impacts. Hence, the government has invested in rail transport, with 70% of its capacity is for freight transport in her busy freight transport corridor (eastern transport regions of Ghana). Thus, awareness of criteria considered when deciding on freight transport becomes vital. Hence, this study aims to improve the understanding of the factors of freight transport mode selection in Ghana from the decision-making process by identifying criteria that affect their decisions on mode transportation. The combination of Fuzzy AHP and Topsis is used to find the weights and suggest suitable alternatives for the decision-makers in the Eastern transport regions of Ghana. The result of this study shows that the criteria to consider when selecting freight transport mode in the regions are prioritized in other of Transport cost (0.6544), transport Time factors (0.2562), reliability, and flexibility (0.0605), and security, Risk of damage and lose factors (0.0287). Additionally, the suitable mode(s) of transportation in the stated corridor is owned truck carrier transport compared to the railroad, road-barge, and Contracted Carrier, thus, in descending order. The results provide organizations to prioritize these factors when deciding to select freight transport mode. At the same time, the government must remove some inputs that result in high transport costs, enforce policies, and invest in the appropriate mode.