Rail Terminals Research Articles

The influence of size, location and functions of freight rail terminals on urban form and land use

This article outlines how the size, location and scope of activities of freight rail terminals influence urban form and land use. The nature of freight rail stations is outlined, and the classes of trains that make use of these facilities are described. According to size, railway freight stations can be divided into four groups: (1) railway halts; (2) small-sized goods stations; (3) medium-sized goods stations; and (4) large-sized goods stations. The factors that determine the location of stations are discussed. Rail freight stations can be divided functionally into four broad classes: (1) break-bulk rail terminals; (2) bulk rail terminals; (3) roll-on/roll-off rail terminals; and (4) intermodal terminals. The functions of the four rail terminal classes are described. The paper discusses how rail freight terminals can influence urban form and land use. Finally the conclusions of the study are presented.

Evaluating primary forest fuel rail terminals with discrete event simulation: A case study from Austria

Biomass rail transport is a useful alternative to unimodal truck transport for medium or long transport distances, if only a short road pre-haulage is required. Up to now primary forest fuels (PFF) are rarely transported on the rail network in Austria and rail terminals able to tranship notable volumes are not established yet. The objective of this study is to investigate the potentials of existing transhipment infrastructure for introducing and operating PFF terminals. Such PFF terminals enable a regular PFF supply to bioenergy plants and additionally provide opportunities for buffer storage and production processes like comminution. Three existing railway sidings in South, Central and Western Austria were chosen to serve as a multimodal transhipment hub with a road pre-haulage and a rail main-haulage for this case study. The logistic potential of these terminals was investigated, modelling the specific PFF supply chains, by means of a discrete event simulation. Simulation results provide daily and annual transhipment capacities and revealed bottlenecks in the terminal layout under different supply scenarios.

3D Animation of the Transpyrenean Corridor Created by GIS Tools

The Transpyrenean Central Corridor plays a vital role in the transportation of goods from the Atlantic ports to the North of Europe. In the European context, the central corridor was originally called Priority Axis Number 16th in the Trans-European Transport Network. Afterwards, it became one of the objectives of the global network for 2050. This work is part of the collaboration agreement that Zaragoza Logistics Center maintains with Fundación Transpirenaica to promote, encourage and boost the role of rail in the Peninsula and Europe. The main objective of this work is to demonstrate the relevance of each logistic node (ports, airports, rail terminals, logistic platforms, etc.) through which the Central corridor passes using three-dimensional animation. In this way its geostrategic position is clearly in evidence and the large economic impact derived from its interconnectivity with ports, airports and transport and logistic infrastructures. The paper also aims to reflect the low environmental and territorial impact that this freight rail corridor represents, respecting natural parks and protected areas, showing in turn the viability of the route for low-slope areas. The rail corridor begins in Algeciras (Spain) and Sines (Portugal) and ends in Paris; for stretches of the route whose current state is not fully defined (under construction, projected future, studying alternatives, etc.), the most reasonable current scenario has been used. The article is a description of the methodology of a 3D animation generation of a corridor where some challenges such as the management of layers and the recording compilation have been overcome. Therefore, the methodology can be applied to any other case study, not only a road infrastructure but even a river, a valley, etc. The range of stakeholders that would benefit from this work goes from entities such as Fundación Transpirenaica–in their promotion of the corridor capacities–, the Administration–to show the feasibility of the path–, and in general companies interested in extending the concept of supply chain management to other geographical areas and also interested in the use of intermodal modes for that end.

The Airport City Phenomenon: Evidence from Large US Airports

As air transport for leisure trips, business travel and goods shipment increased rapidly over the past several decades, the emergence of airport cities has been hypothesised. Busy commercial airports may be emerging as central transport nodes in large metropolitan areas, much as ports and rail terminals were in the past, anchoring employment servicing passengers, facilitating frequent travellers and providing a spatial focus for unrelated firms. An analysis of small-area employment data for the areas surrounding 25 major US airports and the related central cities reveals the concentration of employment within 2.5 miles of these airports to be substantial—approximately half that within 2.5 miles of the central point of the corresponding CBDs—and growing. The analysis refocuses a question about the nature of spatial differentiation within metropolitan regions supporting multiple employment nodes.

Rails across Dixie: a history of passenger trains in the American South

Covering legendary and obscure intercity passenger trains in a dozen Southeastern states, this book details the golden age of train travel. The story begins with the inception of steam locomotives in 1830 in Charleston, South Carolina, continuing through the mid-1930s changeover to diesel and the debut of Amtrak in 1971. Throughout, the book explores the technological achievements, the romance and the economic impact of traveling on the tracks. Other topics include: contemporary museums and excursion trains; the development of commuter rails, monorails, light rails, and other intracity transit trains; the social impact and legal issues of train travel; and historical rail terminals and facilities. The book is supplemented with more than 160 images and 11 appendices.

Scheduling operations of a rail crane and container deliveries between rail and port terminals

This article addresses the problem of scheduling container transfer operations in rail terminals. The overall problem can be divided into three smaller problems: constructing a dual-cycle delivery task by matching inbound and outbound containers; determining parking positions for trucks; and sequencing the delivery tasks for transfer by the rail crane. This article provides a mathematical model to obtain the optimal solutions to these problems, and suggests genetic and heuristic algorithms to reduce computational time when solving larger problems. Numerical experiments are conducted to validate the performance of the suggested heuristic algorithms.

Reducing Train Turn Times with Double Cycling in New Terminal Designs

North American rail terminals need productivity improvements to handle increasing rail volumes and improve terminal performance. This paper examines the benefits of double cycling in wide-span gantry terminals that use automated transfer management systems. The authors demonstrate that the use of double cycling rather than the currently practiced single cycling in these terminals can reduce the number of cycles required to turn a train by almost 50% in most cases and reduce train turn time by almost 40%. This change can provide significant productivity improvements in rail terminals, increasing both efficiency and competitiveness.

A mesoscopic simulation modelling methodology for analyzing and evaluating freight train operations in a rail network

This paper includes a mesoscopic simulation modelling methodology developed for analysing and evaluating freight train operations in a rail network. The product of this methodology is a simulation rail network model implemented using an event-based simulation computer package called SIMUL 8. For simulation modelling purposes a decomposition approach is used. This approach allows us to separate the rail network under study into its components such as rail lines, rail yards, rail stations, rail terminals and junctions. The components of the rail network are thought of as interconnected queuing systems that interact and influence one another, so that the global impact of freight train operations in a rail network is captured. The products presented in this paper are of interest to rail freight tactical management, where global benefits are pursued.

Liberalisation of Rail Freight Markets in Central and South-Eastern Europe: What the European Commission Can Do to Facilitate Rail Market Opening

Drawing on the features of political and economic transformation in Central and South-eastern Europe, this article explores how the First Infrastructure Package which in 2001 liberalised rail freight markets in Europe affected the process of legislative compliance and market dynamics in the new EU-members. The article focuses on how these countries governments’ safeguarding of economic welfare of national voters hindered rail market opening and distorted the level of playing ground for competition between the incumbents and the new entrants. To understand the public administrators’ behaviours, the study looks into in the economic woes of the newly liberated countries which imposed considerable political pressures on the national governments. Opening of rail markets to competition magnified these problems because national incumbents did not know how to compete and earn market profits. Large financial losses that they incurred as a consequence of rail market contestability have seriously threatened the means of subsistence for many railway workers. Thus, the governments stepped in to subsidise the incumbents’ employment and service continuity. These developments reveal conflict between the national priorities and the European Commission’s desire for intra-rail and inter-modal competition. Yet, the results also indicate that despite unequal playing ground, private rail operators in Poland, the Czech Republic, and Romania learned how to compete and accumulate working capital for expansion into the truck-served freight segment. Besides, the growth in markets captured by new entrants was not deterred by infrastructure fees which are among highest in Europe, the discrimination in access to rail terminals and an official favouritism towards incumbents. The explanations are rooted in socio-political transformation which created unique opportunities for entry into the rail freight sector and unleashed entrepreneurial dynamism. In order to minimise incompatibility between the national and the European interests, the article concluded that the European development funds, which the new member states receive should be channelled to remove the discriminatory praxis, dismantle the national railway monopolies, and build consensus between the national and the European prerogatives.

Intermodal Rail Freight in Britain: A Terminal Problem?

Rail has increased its share of the British freight market in the past decade. One particular growth market has been intermodal traffic, where consignments are carried in unit loads (i.e. containers and swap bodies): these accounted for one-fifth of rail freight volumes in 2006/07. In this paper, the key trends are identified, considering both port and domestic services. A critical component of the rail system in allowing further development is the availability and capability of rail terminals. An analysis of terminal provision has been conducted, examining the relationship between the development of intermodal terminals and service provision, and identifying the key challenges for the future.

Container terminals and utilisation of facilities.

In this article, the authors outline production frontiers and efficiency coefficients for container terminals. The authors stress that efficient operations of container terminals are important in order to realize high productivity and low costs per unit of output. The authors report on a technical efficiency analysis study based on a database of European maritime, rail, and barge container terminals. The study include the terminal equipment, four forms of handling systems, the terminal berth, personnel, size of the container terminal, production process bottlenecks, and terminal activities. Results show large differences in terminal efficiency among maritime container terminals. Those terminals that specialize in containers only perform better than terminals that also handle non-containerized goods. When rail terminals and maritime terminals are compared, results show that the variation in the technical efficiency for maritime terminals is larger. In addition, terminals in larger ports are shown to be more efficiency than terminals in smaller ports. No systematic differences per country are found.

Gantry crane operations to transfer containers between trains: A simulation study of a Spanish terminal

Freight transfer operations are critical in combined transport networks. In this paper a simulation model and modelling approach to the transfer of cargo between trains at rail terminals is presented. The model is used to study the Port-Bou terminal, the main intermodal terminal at the Spanish-French frontier. Four different gantry crane operation modes to interchange containers between trains are evaluated. These operation rules are tested in several scenarios to examine the critical factors of the system and the best operation rule for each situation. Latest generation software is used to develop the model that incorporates modular programming and enhanced graphic systems for output representation. It allows a dynamic display of the simulated system and, likewise, the possibility of developing modules that can be reused in other studies. The research shows how simulation can be a useful planning tool in the rail transportation context.

Advanced Rail and Maritime System Demonstrations in Europe

The development of innovative systems for rail and maritime terminals is an issue high on the agenda of the transport industry. In Europe, a number of new transport systems for unitized cargoes are already in the mature design or pilot phase. A study was done to present a subset of these systems for which pilot demonstrations exist, to identify the basic directions of the relevant technological research and to evaluate the effects of these systems on the structural and operational environment of the terminals. The relevant analysis was based on the experience extracted by field trials as well as by modeling tasks used for the evaluation of the related terminal performance. It was revealed that tasks such as the reduction of terminal access time, fast train loading and unloading, and achievement of high degrees in equipment automation are technically and operationally feasible.

Tunnelling of infrastructure: from non-considered to ill considered — lessons from the Netherlands

In The Netherlands, tunnels are in much (public) demand since approximately 1980. Infrastructure is less tolerated in the urban environment, especially when it is elevated above ground. Three different projects for which the authors acted as scientific consultants can serve to demonstrate how problematic it can be to neglect an underground option on the one hand and to make it dogmatic on the other. Existing infrastructure is often seen as both environmentally and commercially damaging, suppressing urban land values. Reconstruction is a difficult task, though, in spite of modern techniques. The Helmond case, where an elevated part of a main road separates the town centre and historical castle and blocks revitalisation of the area, is an adequate demonstration. The proposed replacement with a tunnel proved to be ill considered, i.e. both difficult and costly. Even worse: perhaps the town might do without the road after all! In developing new infrastructure, like high speed train links, urban alignments are avoided because of public resistance. Yet these may prove to be acceptable if tunnelled, whereas an alignment in the rare open countryside is locally despised. This proved to be true in the case of the Amsterdam–Antwerp High-Speed Railway Line (HSL), for the passage of Dordrecht, south of Rotterdam. An urban underground solution was not considered in the government studies. A local proposal, which proved to be quite feasible, was rejected, mainly because it was presented late in the planning process. New types of infrastructure may be developed explicitly for underground use. Lorries are an ever-bigger problem in local distribution, both for the environment and congestion and for trade, dependent on these. Therefore, underground logistic systems (ULS) are proposed more frequently. Perhaps the best-studied one is the Schiphol Airport ULS, intended predominantly to connect air and rail terminals and the world's largest flower auction at Aalsmeer. It showed that the choice for an underground solution can be too dogmatic, not affordable and only partly necessary. Mixed solutions, partly underground, partly on the surface and partly elevated were quite feasible and economically more attractive.

Impacts of highway congestion on freight operations: perceptions of trucking industry managers

To better understand how road congestion adversely affects trucking operations, we surveyed approximately 1200 managers of all types of trucking companies operating in California. More than 80% of these managers consider traffic congestion on freeways and surface streets to be either a “somewhat serious” or “critically serious” problem for their business. A structural equations model (SEM) is estimated on these data to determine how five aspects of the congestion problem differ across sectors of the trucking industry. The five aspects were slow average speeds, unreliable travel times, increased driver frustration and morale, higher fuel and maintenance costs, and higher costs of accidents and insurance. The model also simultaneously estimates how these five aspects combine to predict the perceived overall magnitude of the problem. Overall, congestion is perceived to be a more serious problem by managers of trucking companies engaged in intermodal operations, particularly private and for-hire trucking companies serving airports and private companies serving rail terminals. Companies specializing in refrigerated transport also perceive congestion to be a more serious overall problem, as do private companies engaged in LTL operations. The most problematic aspect of congestion is unreliable travel times, followed by driver frustration and morale, then by slow average speeds. Unreliable travel times are a significantly more serious problem for intermodal air operations. Driver frustration and morale attributable to congestion is perceived to be more of a problem by managers of long-haul carriers and tanker operations. Slow average speeds are also more of a concern for airport and refrigerated operations.

A GIS-based planning approach to locating urban rail terminals

This paper develops a flexible GIS-based methodology for evaluating the potential locations of terminal park-and-ride facilities along urban rail lines. The methodology differs from political-based approaches and traditional travel demand modeling in its use of an objective measure of accessibility to gage the suitability of a site. The methodology begins by constructing an index of derived demand for rail usage based on the local demographics. Principal component analysis (PCA) is used as a means of constructing an index of derived demand consistent with other passenger surveys. Next, trade areas or commutersheds are calculated for each candidate park-and-ride location based on realistic measures of accessibility and network based drive times, taking into account competition among candidates for riders. Following the analysis, the candidate locations and their commutersheds are delineated and visualized in the GIS environment. In summary, application of this method produces a site-specific suitability index that may be used to rank and compare potential park-and-ride locations. We illustrate how our approach fits within the context of the larger-scale corridor study as a complimentary means of refining the location of urban rail stations. The analysis uses the proposed rail system for Columbus Ohio as a case study.

Developing a Proposal for a Multi-User Intermodal Freight Terminal as a Public-Private Partnership: Lessons Learned About Public and Private Perspectives, Timing, and Roles

Intermodal rail terminals are an important part of an integrated freight transportation system. The location of intermodal terminals often has depended on where railroads had spare land adjacent to freight-rail lines. But many of these locations are less than ideal in terms of surrounding land uses and offer little scope for expansion as intermodal traffic grows. A study undertaken in Minnesota to evaluate the need for new or expanded intermodal terminal facilities in the Twin Cities metropolitan area is described. The process was funded by the metropolitan planning organization for the Twin Cities region, the state department of transportation, and three private railroad carriers. It involved a series of studies to determine the market for an intermodal facility, to locate a site and develop a proposal for a multi-user terminal, and to assess the terminal’s economic benefits for the region. Several lessons were learned during this public-private partnership process; these are useful for other metropolitan areas considering freight needs. The public and private sectors bring different perspectives to the development process, and coordinating their decision making is a challenge. It is crucial to obtain and to maintain appropriate and timely access to decision makers. The competitive positions of carriers must be assessed and the project’s impact on the relative market share among them will be critical. Given the lack of support by the railroads to develop a joint-use intermodal facility, as recommended in the study, neither the railroads nor the development community was willing to implement the project.

The design of a terminal network for intermodal transport

A model called TERMINET 1 model has been developed to determine locations and capacities of road and rail terminals where transshipment of load-units between road vehicles and trains takes place. The model consists of a traffic conversion method which translates freight flows from tonnes to numbers of load-units as well as a freight flow consolidation method using existing assignment techniques. The TERMINET model examines the possible binding effect of terminal infrastructure and investigates the influence of the cost structure of intermodal transport which strongly determines the possible modal-shift from road to intermodal transport. The TERMINET model makes it possible to determine interactively or automatically inland terminal locations for transshipment of load-units between road vehicles trains. The influence of train length on terminal locations, terminal capacities and network load may be calculated. Besides these capabilities it is also possible to determine the overall system performance in tonnes, tonne-kilometres, TEUs and numbers of trains. The TERMINET model has been applied to the design of an inland road and rail terminal network in the Netherlands to be used in an intermodal road and rail freight transport system for international and Dutch domestic freight flows for the year 2015. The cost structure of intermodal transport has been examined. Cost calculations have been made to examine the effect of zero or complete passing on of external and infrastructure costs to both the road and rail mode. Furthermore, the effect of the maximum use of intermodal transport on the reduction of the growth of road transport has been examined.

Market area of rail-truck terminals: Pertinence of the spatial theory

The comparison of transport modes cannot neglect space or location. Road and rail networks differ greatly from each other in the number of access points: the choice of one mode over another thus depends on shippers' location in relation to these points. For freight, a spatial theory allows us to compare road and rail-truck intermodal transport. By tracing the market area of rail terminals, the theory defines the zones for which each mode is the most competitive. It shows which factors guarantee profitability for intermodal transport. The market area of a number of existing terminals was set up by questioning carriers. The results confirm our theoretical conclusions, notably the effect that the location relative to the terminal, the rail line-haul direction, and the length of the rail line-haul have on the size of the intermodal rail terminal's market area.

Transport network design and mode choice modeling for automobile distribution: A case study

Abstract This paper describes the development and implementation of a mixed integer programming type model designed to determine the best transport mode and rail network location strategy for a leading international automobile manufacturer to supply its North American dealers. In particular, this manufacturer wished to establish a plan for its future vehicle distribution that would determine the best mix of truck, conventional rail and containerized intermodal rail to transport cars and light trucks from its North American plants and ports of entry to its dealers. Further, the manufacturer desired to evaluate the proper number, types and locations of rail terminals required for its distribution network. This paper is intended to provide a perspective on the practical application side of this study and how one can conduct such studies in a condensed time period. Thus, in addition to describing the study problem, results and benefits, we also emphasize such topics as how one can manipulate relatively “user friendly” commercial software to address potentially complex mode choice and location problems.