Modelling and evaluating the economics of inland waterway transport on the Hangyong canal, China

Abstract

The primary goal of this study was to determine appropriate policies to increase the proportion of freight transported by water on the Hangyong canal in China and thus improve the economic efficiency of the canal. Factors were used to construct a transportation chain utility function and the most suitable model was selected according to the level of significance of the estimated parameter values. It was determined that the total logistics costs are the most significant factors in the decisions of Hangyong canal freight shippers. To show the heterogeneity in the choices of shippers, a mixed logit model with random parameters and a restricted triangular distribution was constructed. The time value of all shipping in the Hangyong channel was found as 52·50 yuan (1 GBP = 9·9970 CNY (15/09/2014))/(twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) h). The modal share of the waterway transport chain, particularly the chain using 500 deadweight ton ships (1 deadweight ton (DWT) = 1000 deadweight kilograms), gradually increases as the channel capacity is increased. Furthermore, the effect of the transportation time on the 500 DWT ship waterway transportation chain is much higher than that of the transportation cost. The increase in waterway modal share resulting from reductions in transportation time is approximately seven times that resulting from reductions in transportation cost of the same percentage.