II. Pros and cons of using Rail/risks and benefits of using Rail There are several pros and cons to any mode of transportation. These pros and cons include cost, efficiency, and responsiveness. The goal is to find the most appropriate mode of transportation for the type, amount, and destination of cargo. There will be different needs for every product, origin, destination, and organization. First on the list is cost. Cost of transportation is one of the major considerations involved in a successful supply chain. Fortunately, in this department rail is one of the best performers. Rail is known for being a relatively inexpensive mode of transporting large amounts of overland cargo. In fact, “The price structure and heavy load capability …show more content…
On the other hand, if the organization were able to ship their goods by truck, then they would have the option of either operating an in-house fleet or outsourcing their transportation needs. When comparing rail to tucking it is important to keep some things in mind. In the early days, the choice of rail vs truck was easy because by the time that transportation by tuck came about rail transportation had been around for a long time. In addition, “the adoption of motor cars also proved to be more gradual than that of passenger trains, the result of primitive technologies, high costs, and poor roads” (GRANT, 2012, p. 248). This further added to the dominance of rail. In defense of trucking it can hall large amounts of cargo over long distances. In addition, it can do so with a reasonably high degree of responsiveness. However, the amount of cargo that rail can hall is considerably larger than that of trucking. The responsiveness of trucking also comes at a higher cost then rail. Trucking is more suited to haling more expensive goods that require higher responsiveness. However, in other parts of the world where the rail infrastructure is more developed or more suitable for transporting cargo this may not be an option. Perhaps the best use of both rail and truck is in combination through intermodal transportation. This method makes use of one or more transportation methods in order to achieve to achieve the best mix of
Coyle, J., Novack, R., Gibson, B., Bardi, E. (2011, 2003) Transportation: A Supply Chain Perspective. Mason, Ohio: South-Western Cengage Learning
On the other hand, the Sydney Light Rail brings some disadvantages to society and the environment. The construction has caused many local businesses to close due to the interruption caused by blocked roads affecting access and parking, thereby losing customers resulting in a decline in sales. In Appendix 3, David said the Bourke Street Bakery has ‘suffered a considerable loss of customers’, and others such as Book Kitchen in Surry Hills have closed. The light rail has evidently affected residents and businesses, however in Sydney Olympic Park, following the development, the longer term benefit means businesses are now positively impacted by extra customers and more residents. Many individuals and businesses have moved due to the disruption of construction, noise and blocked roads, causing more traffic and congestion, seen in I.6.
Of the three forms of transportation, rail has the highest fixed costs, motor carriers the greatest variable costs, and air transport, the greatest variable costs of service and logistics optimization. Starting with rail, the cost structure has the highest fixed cost components, driven by infrastructure and terminal costs. Rail is therefore the most difficult to negotiate a lower transportation cost for, as the fixed costs form an inflexible pricing structure for retail service providers. The quality of rail service varies significantly across nations and regions as well, leading to greater variability in costs when a shipment moves across national and regional boundaries. Given the highly fixed cost structure of rail systems, there is significant room for improvement from an efficiency standpoint. The use of containerization is continually adding to greater efficiencies to this mode of transport (Jennings, Holcomb, 1996).
The railroad service which picks up truck trailers at a producer 's location, loads them onto rail flatcars,
. It is very possible that rail is currently permitting something of awakening. Countries that have not traditionally had a culture of rail transit, and regions where there has been a history of underinvestment, are changing course with power. Fantasying how rail adventures might be competed in 2050 and the coming years will help shape the rising role that rail will play in our future.
Look at Source C. Why was it cheaper to transport goods by rail rather than roads? It was cheaper to transport my rail because by this method more good could be carried and also taken a longer distance while by road a horse can only travel for so long before it would need
railroads in the 20th century continued to develop. Between 1970 and 2000 the rails freight
Railroads can be used human passenger traffic, or the transportation of freight and shipments from one destination to another due to the fact that “trains are four times more fuel efficient than trucks” (Association of American Railroads [AAR], 2015), and the fact that railroads also “reduce highway gridlock, lower greenhouse gas emissions, reduce pollution” (AAR, 2015). In fact railroad transportation according to United States Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration, “rail network accounts for approximately 40 percent of U.S. freight moves by ton-miles (the length freight travels)” (Federal Railroad Administration, 2010). With the reliance on railroads to transport freight and shipments from one place to another also
Often, when people think of the functions of trains, they simply view them as modes of transportation. In
The lack of growth observed in the state of California with the Hydrail project sparks question as to where the interest in rail rests. Improving rail transportation for logistics purpose also includes the movement of people. In an article by NPR, The author interviews American’s benefiting directly from the freight industry of rail transportation. The focus with the article addresses popularity among high-speed bullet train growth for passenger rail, in addition to how that impacts the infrastructure for freight rail in a negative manner. The article offers nothing short of rewarding insight into the discussion of expanding freight technology, with regards to the popular focus on high-speed commuter rail.
The more remote the train needs to travel, the more drawn out the trek will take, and the more benefit and experience focuses you'll gain consequently. Freight trains work in an unexpected way, and add another component to your station, as a Loading Dock. You'll have to first send your trains to the Loading Docks, where they will be stacked up, and afterward you'll send them back to your station where you can recover you're recently earned materials.
Truck trains, or road trains, is a method of trucking used in remote areas (like Argentina, Australia, Mexico, the United States, and Canada) where train tracks cannot be placed, and move freight efficiently. A truck train consists of a relatively conventional tractor unit, but instead of towing one trailer, a truck train pulls two or more of them.
The difference in the share of railways in the USA and the EU is due to the geographical distances between cities in the USA and the EU. Railways cost less to operate and have fewer emissions when compared to trucking. Yet, the use of railways is limited for the following reasons: (i) building its infrastructure is very costly; (ii) the long lead time required for developing the infrastructure; (iii) consistent-high-volume of the freight traffic is needed for economic viability; and (iv) the need for trucks for the distribution to the final destinations. Trucks have many advantages over other modes of transportation, especially that they provide last mile delivery. Trucks, as compared to railways, ships, or planes have the most flexibility in reaching a destination, and the upfront
SCM can be divided into three main groups: purchase, manufacture, and transport (Thomas et al., 1996). The focus is on transportation. There are different modes of transportation. These modes of transportation fall under three basic types and they are: land (road, rail and pipelines), water (shipping) and air. Transportation plays a connective role among the several steps that result in the conversion of resources into useful goods for the ultimate consumer. It is the planning of all these functions and sub-functions into a system of goods movement in order to minimize cost and maximize service to the customers that constitutes the concept of business logistics. The system, once it’s put in place, must be effectively managed (Fair & Williams, 1981). What are the advantages and disadvantages of these modes of transportation in logistics?
Transport plays a critical role in the supply chain and according to Bhattacharya et al. (2014) it is becoming one of the key components of the whole supply chain valuation for many organizations. Transportation is the movement of good from one location to another. Supply chain is a network of individuals, organizations, activities, resources and technology that is involved in formation and sale of a product, which is from the delivery of source materials from the supplier to the manufacturer, through to the end user. Hopkins (2007) states that supply chain professionals look at whole business procedures, which is from raw materials to manufacturing, wholesaling and retailing. And by