The external cost of speed at sea: An analysis based on selected short sea shipping routes

According to the mid-term review of the EU White Paper on Transport, Short Sea Shipping (SSS) is expected to grow at a rate of 59% (metric tonnes) between 2000 and 2020. If we consider that the overall expected increase in both freight exchanges and volume is 50%, sea transport is one of the most feasible alternatives to reduce traffic congestion on European roads. Maritime transportation may compete with road transport as far as certain traffics are concerned, but only when assuming external costs. This paper analyzes several intermodal transport chains involving a sea leg by comparing the effect of pollutant emissions from different ship types and road transport in terms of potential external cost savings. The translation of these emissions into environmental costs shows, for certain conditions, savings in the case of sea transport that would justify the use of an environmental bonus to promote the sea option.     

Do port security quality and service quality influence customer satisfaction and loyalty?

ABSTRACT

This study uses Kaohsiung Port as a case study to evaluate the relationships between port security quality, port service quality, customer satisfaction, and customer loyalty. For this purpose, a survey was conducted with shipping companies and freight forwarders in Taiwan. The results indicate that port security quality has a direct and positive impact on both port service quality and customer satisfaction; port service quality has a direct and positive impact on both customer satisfaction and customer loyalty; and customer satisfaction has a direct and positive impact on customer loyalty. However, the impact from port service quality is more significant than that of port security quality. Accordingly, this study suggests that Kaohsiung Port should concentrate on improving its service quality in order to enhance customer satisfaction and customer loyalty.     

Cooperation among freight forwarders: Mode choice and intermodal freight transport

The objective of this paper is to compare vertical and horizontal cooperation among freight forwarders. The paper analyses three freight forwarders (‘players’) with two different means of transportation. The first two players are truck-operating freight forwarders. The third player is a freight forwarder with its own ship. For the purposes of analysis, the paper applied a two-stage game. The results revealed that the best form of cooperation is the one in which the large truck-operating company would establish a coalition with the ship-operating company; that is, vertical cooperation. This cooperation would generate better payoffs in the form of profit, not only to the members of this coalition, but also to the player that has not joined the coalition. However, user surplus is negative in all coalitions, which shows that the establishment of these kinds of cooperation is not beneficial (in terms of prices) for the users of these service providers.     

进口原油运输船型经济性分析

石油是世界海上运量最大的货种之一，约占海上总运输量的三分之一。加入WTO后，中国石油海上运输量，特别是进口原油运输量将大幅度地增加。针对这一现实情况，本文对世界原油运输船队的技术经济作了概括性分析，对原油进口航线作了介绍。建立了单船运输经济性测算模型。基于实船经济指标测算结果，以必要运费率为主，通过比较选出了优良船型。并定量测算出不同类型船舶在同一航线上营运的必要运费率及其差异。研究结果指出，随着进口原油量的大幅度增加，中国应大力发展VLCC和Suezmax船队，重点建设大型深水油轮码头。     

Competitiveness between short sea shipping and road freight transport in mainland port connections; the case of two Greek ports

While road freight transport is essential to any modern economy, short sea shipping (SSS) offers a competitive alternative mode of freight transport in terms of private and social costs, when applied in the connection of mainland ports. This mainly stems from the fact that within the context of the latter costs, accidents and environmental impacts in many road links constitute undesirable externalities with which road freight transport is heavily burdened. This paper compares the aforementioned economics of road and sea transport with reference to the connection of the port of Patra (the main western freight gate of Greece) with West Attica (the biggest Greek industrial centre), aiming at providing a viable solution towards the promotion of SSS in the transport chain between mainland ports.     

上海内河货运量的组合预测

内河航运是综合交通运输系统中不可缺少的运输方式,存在着很大的潜在优势.定量地把握未来内河运输的发展趋势,具有重大的现实意义.通过利用时间序列模型、logistic曲线与自回归模型等,对2010-2015年的上海内河货运量进行预测.在此基础上,对不同模型赋予不同的权重,建立了组合预测模型.研究表明:未来上海内河货运量将持续稳定地增长.为提高预测的精度,有必要综合地使用多个预测方法.     

Rail and multi-modal transport

This paper elaborates on the definitions of inter and multi-modal transport, as well as their differences in terms of performance. A survey of the barriers, both internal and external, to an efficient intermodal transport is included followed by an analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of combining rail transport with the other transport modes. Transhipment technologies for efficient freight service and some examples of freight rail corridors between sea and inland terminals are presented. The integration between air and rail transport is discussed and the potential synergies between air and high-speed rail services are emphasised. The paper concludes with a discussion on energy use for sustainable rail performance.     

桂林市综合运输服务体系研究

桂林市以区域交通枢纽为发展定位、建设国际旅游胜地为发展战略,未来将带来客货运量的稳步增长。针对由此对综合客货枢纽场站设施、运输服务所提出的更高需求,立足于桂林市经济社会发展和旅游城市特色,从综合客运枢纽、货物集疏运中心、运输服务信息共享、运输组织模式、运输服务工作机制、运输服务标准规范等方面进行系统研究,通过推进区域综合运输协同、城市内外交通协同、城乡客货运输协同,构建与桂林城市发展相适应的“衔接顺畅、服务优质、支撑有力、管理规范”的综合运输服务体系。     

Incorporation of customer satisfaction in public transport contracts – A preliminary analysis

The design of public transport contracts provides an opportunity to define service quality standards to which an operator can be held accountable. While the specification of service quality standards is a common practice, the relationships between the specifications and customer satisfaction are often methodologically unclear. Based on a South African case study, the paper uses data collected from a group of passengers who have personal cars but choose to use public transport, and a control group of passengers who only use their cars, in the same corridor as the user group, to estimate a service quality conjoint model. The model is used to evaluate the effect of different public transport service packages, defined in terms of different combinations of service attributes, on passenger satisfaction. The paper confirms the need to classify service attributes in terms of their relative impact on passenger satisfaction, at the service design stages, where performance in respect of some attributes has a disproportionate impact on satisfaction, especially where public transport is competing directly with private transport. Practical applications and limitations of the methodology are also discussed.     

Development of Motorways of the Sea in the Adriatic region

Freight volumes are increasing worldwide, following almost the same growth rate as the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This has resulted in congested sections of the road system and increase of traffic accidents. Consequently, several governments in Europe are promoting alternative modes of transport. Besides the use of railways, the European Union is promoting the use of maritime transport for short distances. This initiative, ‘Motorways of the Sea (MoS)’, aims at the establishment of more efficient and competitive maritime services between different countries. The present paper analyzes the development of an MoS network in the East Adriatic area, linking the Greek Ports of Igoumenitsa and Patras in the Ionian Sea. This is done by identifying financially viable MoS corridors, servicing the freight and passenger demand of the area. Initially, the freight and passenger flows of MoS in the East Adriatic/Ionian Seas region, based on the application of the four-step methodology for transport planning, are estimated. Then, the financial viability of each MoS is elaborated, based on the estimated flows. Hence, the network of MoS services is determined for the area. Thus, the paper provides a useful tool to maritime operators, port authorities and policy makers to investigate the financial viability of an MoS network.     

基于SD 仿真的广西北部湾港集疏运系统协调发展研究*

为分析港口集疏运系统的行为特征和发展趋势,首先依据协同论等相关理论,对港口集疏运系统协调发展内涵进行了界定。其次以广西北部湾港口为研究对象,运用系统动力学的原理及仿真方法,在系统分析和因果反馈分析的基础上建立了港口集疏运协调发展的系统动力学模型,包括港口吞吐需求、吞吐能力、集疏运结构及货源结构4个子模块。模型结构与行为等检验方式验证了该模型的有效性。最后基本模拟和政策模拟结果分析为港口集疏运发展决策提供理论依据和指导。     

船员管理信息系统的构想

探讨了构建船员管理信息系统,依托信息技术对船员实行有效的动态管理。在系统开发、用户访问和安全设计等主要方面初步论证了管理信息系统的技术可行性。研究表明,应用网络的开放性和交互性,能够充分发挥网络联系政府、船公司、船员的实效,在船公司与船员之间以及政府管理机关与船员之间建立一种新型的服务平台,在全国范围建立快速的、优良的船员管理信息系统,从而进一步提升我国航运服务业的国际竞争力。     

Market efficiency within dry bulk markets in the short run: a multi-agent system dynamics Nash equilibrium

In this paper, we assess the Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH) in relation to dry bulk shipping in the short run. The aim is to explain why freight rates in the different ship segments are highly correlated. By building a system dynamics model, which is well-suited to modelling complex and stochastic processes with limited data availability, we attempt to track the arbitrage process in which the different ship types (Handy, Panamax and Capesize) literally seek to transport each others’ cargoes (substitution) when this is beneficial. Also, within one ship segment, we govern the arbitrage opportunities arising from regional differences in freight rates. Although the EMH is ever more contested in the maritime literature, holistic and analytical proof is provided that efficiency is maintained through the intrinsic arbitrage free and evolutionary behaviour in the system towards the Nash equilibrium.     

Eastern/Western European shipping companies and multimodal transport operations

The purpose of this article is to discuss the current developments in multimodal cargo flows in North European freight transports from Eastern and Western European shipping companies' point of view. Four types of options were identified for shipping companies in multimodal transport operations, namely: (i) the full service operator option, (ii) the feeder operator option in container trades, (iii) the ro-ro operator option, and (iv) the ferry operator option. Option (i) requires a global transport network together with efficient information handling capabilities. This option can be reached by a limited number of mega-carriers. The scope of investment and know-how in this option is such that Eastern European operators are unlikely to achieve this level. In (ii), fleets from (or registered in) the former socialist countries have an advantage as low cost operators, provided that the quality of the operation conforms to principals' requirements. However, the supply side in the intra-European container feeder trades seems to be quite saturated, and new market shares will be very difficult to acquire in the 1990s. In ro-ro shortsea trades the major freight transport operators are well integrated into either freight forwarder driven arrangements (Sweden, Germany), or into major shippers (Finland). As providers of port-to-port transports for road-based cargoes, ferry operators continue to play an important part in international transports. However, the major incentive (and revenue) for passenger/car ferry operations is usually derived from consumers' vacational or travelling needs. Along with the ongoing transition process and a higher level of economic stability that is hopefully achieved in these countries, mergers and acquisitions by Western partners are likely to follow.     

Maritime transport and international seaborne trade

Drawing upon over four decades of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Review of Maritime Transport, this article considers selected key trends that have shaped the maritime transportation of today. Over the review period, a fundamental shift in the geography of trade has been observed, with developing countries increasingly driving growth in the world economy and seaborne trade, and becoming important players in global value chains. The specialization of countries, including in developing regions, in the provision of the maritime goods and services for which they have established a comparative advantage constitutes another major trend, a move away from previous patterns where developing countries were typically users of maritime transport services. The article also observes that bilateral freight sharing agreements between countries which were prominent in 1970s have largely lost their practical relevance, leading to a further liberalization of markets and resulting in overall relatively lower freight costs.     

On the evaluation of a public transportation network quality: Criteria validation methodology

A public transportation network serves in adequate way a population if it evolves in time following the existent social reality. Changes made in order to improve service must be analyzed and evaluated. The introduction of modern technology to validate the fare card allowed a quick access to important, although incomplete, data. Databases with only the getting in validation information can be used to construct an origin–destination (OD) matrix, allowing a service quality analysis. Here it is presented a basic methodology to rigorously validate service quality criteria considering what might be interesting for the user. The quality analysis philosophy is the following. First, based on automatically gathered data, one reconstructs the origin–destination (OD) matrix, which contains information concerning the number of passengers traveling between zones of a certain region. The OD matrix is used to calculate some criteria characterizing the transportation network quality, such as traveling times, waiting times at a stop or transport occupation. The reconstructed OD matrix always contains errors, which cause errors in the criteria values. How significant are these errors? This question can be answered using our criteria validating methodology, which is based on statistical analysis. It has been implemented at the urban bus transport system of Porto, STCP, allowing the evaluation of the transportation network quality under a number of criteria and guaranteeing rigorous results.     

Some current aspects of marketing in the near-sea ferry and liner trades with particular reference to the lrish Sea

The marketing of ferry services has almost unique characteristics but little literature exists in this field. This paper is the result of a preliminary investigation, based on a series of interviews, into some current aspects of marketing on the Irish Sea. The study considers three services types: container; freight only; ro-ro and multi-purpose ro-ro.

The complementarity, or otherwise, of carrying passengers and freight together is debated, as is the organizational conflict or confusion that may arise from this type of operation. The need to adopt different marketing strategies in the freight and passenger markets is derived from consumers' different buying behaviours. The sometimes contentious relationship between product differentiation and market segmentation strategies is explored and definitions provided. Both market coverage and specialization strategies are found in the ro-ro industries and the more competitive segments are identified. Using 'purpose of travel' as the basis for segmentation, potential growth segments of the passenger market are identified. The marketing strategies employed by the freight industry are less apparent, although segmentation does seem to play a major role in the identification of target markets.

The study indicates the extent to which shipping companies on the Irish Sea have adopted the marketing concept and that scope still exists for them to make greater use of this fundamental business philosophy.     

A multi-criteria decision method for the analysis of the Motorways of the Sea: the application to the case of France and Spain on the Atlantic Coast

Despite European Union (EU) political support to identify the most feasible Motorways of the Sea, the final decision can only be made by Private Shipping Companies, which are operators of a unique stretch of the intermodal chain. This paper provides a multi-criteria decision method to identify the most suitable Motorways of the Sea taking into account the competitiveness of whole intermodal routes versus the alternative of road transport from the loader’s perspective. The analysis is carried out assuming a ‘many-to-many’ transport model. Firstly indexes of time and cost were defined and evaluated for every available route in the model in accordance with a multi-criteria decision matrix. Secondly, through a Monte Carlo simulation a sensitivity analysis was carried out in order to evaluate the influence on the results of the forecast assumed to construct the matrix. The results obtained are not only quantitative, but also qualitative. The development of intermodal routes via Motorways of the Sea is especially relevant for the peripheral EU countries. Due to the relevance of the freight flow between France and Spain and the congestion of their connections through the Pyrenees, the method proposed was applied to the analysis of this particular case     

舰艇综合性能优化中的层次分析模糊综合评判方法及其程序系统开发

将层次分析与模糊综合评判方法相结合,建立一个用于工程设计方案优选和综合性能优化的新方法。开发一个实用程序系统,该系统能够通过层次分析与模糊综合评判方法的结合,以及专家和用户意见的综合,使对设计方案的分析论证及最后优选体现专家的经验和判断及用户的期望。程序结构清晰,界面友好,使用和维护、修改都十分方便。适宜于工程方案论证和优化设计中应用,也可运用于工程及社会管理系统。论文针对舰艇综合性能优化实例,讨论本方法及程序的特点和使用方法。     

集装箱货运站智能管理信息系统的设计与实现

集装箱货运站的工作效率和服务满意度在一定程度上关系到港口的竞争力和发展前景,而提高货运站工作效率和服务满意度的一个重要手段就是使其实现智能化的信息系统管理。文章阐述集装箱货运站的服务框架、业务流程及其智能管理系统的设计思路,包括系统的开发流程、总体设计方案、功能模块、程序设计、数据库设计和系统界面,得出系统的输入输出模式,并展望其对集装箱港口信息化技术发展的积极意义。