TRB JPR 2007

Shared Intermodal Terminals and the Potential for Improving the Efficiency of Rail-Rail Interchange: 

Shared Intermodal Terminals and the Potential for Improving the Efficiency of Rail-Rail Interchange Email: ecojpr@hofstra.edu Paper available at: http://people.hofstra.edu/faculty/Jean-paul_Rodrigue Jack Lanigan Sr. & John Zumerchik, Mi-Jack Products Inc. Jean-Paul Rodrigue, Hofstra University, New York Randall Guensler & Michael Owen Rodgers, Georgia Institute of Technology

A Future Intermodal Terminal: 

A Future Intermodal Terminal

Integrated Transport Systems: 

Integrated Transport Systems Resurgence in rail transportation Driven by capacity and competitive advantages. Substantial growth in international trade: Particularly imports from Asia (China). Interface between global supply chains and national distribution; national gateways. Growth in long distance shipments at the international and national levels. Rail productivity: Decrease in rail freight rates (35% decline between 1980 and 2000). Increase in trucking transport costs (wages, fuel, insurance, congestion). Capacity constraints at gateways: Containerization growing rapidly. Large volumes at gateways create capacity constraints. Intermodal rail offers an alternative to the capacity constraints of trucking.

Freight Volume, United States, 1960-2005: 

Freight Volume, United States, 1960-2005

Between a Gateway and a Hard Place: Major Maritime and Land Gateways, 2004: 

Between a Gateway and a Hard Place: Major Maritime and Land Gateways, 2004

Intermodal and Transmodal Operations: 

Intermodal and Transmodal Operations ROAD RAIL MARITIME Intermodal Terminal Thruport Ship-to-ship DCs / CD Intermodal Operations Transmodal Operations On-dock rail Transloading Port container yard

Advanced Rail Terminals and their Constraints: 

Advanced Rail Terminals and their Constraints Thruport concept Advanced transmodal rail terminal facility. Reduce handling and the number of container movements. Optimal use (flow based) of the terminal rail capacity. Analogy with air transport hubs: Belongs to an independent entity. Consolidation and redistribution. Passengers “reposition” themselves. Major constraints Real estate and terminal configuration. Market and ownership fragmentation. Performance metrics.

Real Estate Constraints: 

Real Estate Constraints Terminal Configuration Change From “box-shaped” with many spurs to elongated and less spurs. Location/Function Changes More space consuming terminals. New sites further away from the core areas. Importance of highway access. Often integrated with logistics parks (“freight villages”). CBD

Transmodal Transportation and Market Fragmentation: 

Transmodal Transportation and Market Fragmentation Market fragmentation Mainly retail / consumption related. National distribution in view of global production. Single origin; through a gateway and several destinations (DC). Thruport: reconcile the high volume requirements of markets with the time sensitive requirements of distribution. Thruport Gateway Markets

Transmodal Transportation and Ownership Fragmentation: 

Transmodal Transportation and Ownership Fragmentation Railroad fragmentation Own facilities and customers. Own markets along the segments they control. A shared terminal for interchange addresses the ownership fragmentation problem. The Thruport creates multiplying productivity effects. The distribution potential of each operator is expanded. Network alliances like in the airline industry (constrained by the spatial fixity of rail networks). Thruport Gateway B A C D

Transmodal Transportation and Supply Chain Fragmentation: 

Transmodal Transportation and Supply Chain Fragmentation Supply Chain fragmentation Contemporary supply chains involve a complex sequence of trips. Specialization and comparative advantages. Different stages (parts, manufacturing, distribution); each of which could benefit from a Thruport. Thruport would have a positive impact on the locational behavior of production and distribution activities. Thruport Supply Chain Parts & raw materials Manufacturing Distribution 1 1 2 2 3 3 1 2 3 4 4 4 4 4 Customers

Transmodal Transportation and Ownership Fragmentation: 

Transmodal Transportation and Ownership Fragmentation Local Rail Terminals Location Fragmentation at transmodal Interchange. Requires cross-town hauling of containers between terminals (“rubber tire” or “steel wheel”). Takes place within a metropolitan area. Contributes to congestion. Negative feedback undermines the reliability of the transport chain. The construction of new terminal facilities in suburban areas exacerbate the problem. CBD Metropolitan Area

Slide14: 

A) Container B) Chassis C) Hostler (inbound yard) D) Cross-town truck E) Inbound storage F) Outbound storage G) Hostler (outbound yard) H) Doublestack railcar 1) Inter Box Connector (IBC) unlocked. 2) Container unloaded to chassis. 3) Hostler hooks up the chassis. 4) Hostler brings container to the outbound storage yard. 5) Cross-town truck checks in at the inbound operator entrance gate and is given the location of chassis/container to be picked up. 6) CT truck checks out at the inbound operator exit gate, presenting proper identification for the pick up. 7) CT truck checks in at the entrance gate of the outbound rail operator and given instructions where to drop off the C/C at the storage area. 8) CT truck drops the C/C at the storage area. 9) Holster picks up the C/C at the storage area and brings it trackside for outbound loading. 10) IBC installed on bottom container. 11) Crane loads the container on the doublestack railcar. 12) IBC locked. 13) Chassis removed from trackside and stored in an empty chassis area. Steps

Performance Metrics: 

Performance Metrics Terminal performance In terms of interchange volume, speed and reliability. Logistics permeates into the rail industry. Under appreciated problem because it has been an under studied problem. Volume of time-sensitive freight continues to increase due to: A growing reliance on just-in-time manufacturing. Greater consumption of temperature-sensitive products (food, beer, wine, confectionary, chemicals, coatings, adhesives).

Performance Estimates for Chicago: 

Performance Estimates for Chicago Interchange traffic from 30 to 50% of the volume. It can take longer for a container to move 20 miles through Chicago than the 2000 miles from Los Angeles to Chicago.

Thruport: Full and Hybrid Configurations: 

Thruport: Full and Hybrid Configurations Full Hybrid (2-1)

Ownership Models: 

Ownership Models Shared facility model “Thruport authority”. Public or private consortium. Mostly transmodal. Fits better the full Thruport configuration. “Freight Village” model Each railroad owns/operates a yard. Location is shared. Intermodal and transmodal. Fits better the hybrid Thruport configuration (two lifts). Agglomeration of distribution centers. Shared Facility (Thruport Consortium) A C D B E A B Freight Village DC DC DC

Potential Impacts of a Thruport System: 

Potential Impacts of a Thruport System

Productivity Improvements in Freight Distribution: 

Productivity Improvements in Freight Distribution Private Sector Reduction of the minimal viable rail distance: Currently 500 to 600 miles for rail vs. truck. Reduce rail terminals for pickup or delivery: Significant benefit for perishable cargos. Faster turnaround for rolling stock and increase operational utilization. Reduce chassis requirement. Trackside handling of containers: Full and empty, inbound and outbound. Increased operational flexibility: All tracks can be converted, by need, to 2, 4, or 6 to 1 ramp operations. Trackside storage and pick-up/drop-off. Improved labor productivity. Efficiency savings results in lower rates for freight stakeholder.

Productivity Improvements in Freight Distribution: 

Productivity Improvements in Freight Distribution Public Sector Reduce truck traffic. Reduce freight bottlenecks and highway congestion. Improve the speed and reliability of national freight distribution. Reduce potential local truck crash and damage costs. Dramatically lowers energy consumption and reduces emission linked with freight movements: Significantly reduce impacts in urban areas.

Other Environmental Impacts: 

Other Environmental Impacts

Conclusion: Shared Transmodal Facilities in 21st Century Continental Rail Distribution: 

Conclusion: Shared Transmodal Facilities in 21st Century Continental Rail Distribution The Thruport concept and Inland Freight Distribution Growth and changes in international and domestic container shipments: Higher levels of integration along commodity chains. Emergence of long distance rail corridors. Additional stress on the transportation infrastructure: Increased volumes. Growth in time sensitive cargo. Rail is well positioned: Increase both total shipments (absolute) and market share (relative). Need to increase mainline capacity in critical areas. Increasing throughput by reducing rail to rail transfer times. The Thruport and related approaches offer an efficient means of reducing critical rail to rail transfer times.