Rail–Truck Multimodal Freight Collaboration: Truck Freight Carrier Perspectives in the United States
Publication: Journal of Transportation Engineering
Volume 141, Issue 11
Abstract
Due to the impacts of highway congestion, truck driver shortage, the need for energy security, and the increasing revenue gaps to finance highway infrastructure construction and renewal, there is a critical need to explore the opportunities and barriers to rail-truck multimodal transportation paradigms. This study proposes a two-step modeling approach to explore truck freight carrier perspectives on the factors that foster/impede their willingness to collaborate with rail freight carriers through multimodal freight collaboration, and how these factors are correlated with their operational and behavioral characteristics. Understanding these correlations can provide rail freight carrier decision makers insights for the design of targeted mechanisms that will be required for such collaborations to come to fruition, including: (1) adjusting the rail carrier operations; (2) adopting technology that is synergistic with those of truck freight carriers; (3) designs for uncontainerized cargo; and (4) improved quality control strategies for service.
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Acknowledgments
This study is based on research supported by the NEXTRANS Center, the USDOT Region 5 University Transportation Center at Purdue University. The authors gratefully acknowledge the participation of the management/staff of various truck freight carriers in the study survey. The authors also thank Bruce Cox of TransWorks, Inc. for his suggestions on the survey questionnaire design. Thanks are also due to Dr. Fred Mannering, Dr. Yu-Ting Hsu, and Ms. Lin Du for their suggestions on the survey data analysis. Any errors or omissions remain the sole responsibility of the authors.
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Published In
Journal of Transportation Engineering
Volume 141 • Issue 11 • November 2015
Copyright
© 2015 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Aug 8, 2014
Accepted: May 4, 2015
Published online: Jul 3, 2015
Published in print: Nov 1, 2015
Discussion open until: Dec 3, 2015
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