Environmental Factors and Intermodal Freight Transportation: Analysis of the Decision Bases in the Case of Spanish Motorways of the Sea

Abstract

Today, there is widespread consensus about the notable, yet simultaneously growing, negative environmental impacts generated by the transportation sector. Experts working in a number of different fields consider the current situation to be unsustainable and possible measures to reduce emissions and foster sustainability are being encouraged. The European Commission has highlighted the need to shift away from unimodal road transport toward a greater use of intermodal transport through, for example, motorways of the sea, in light of the evidence that the former makes a significant contribution to increased CO 2 emissions. However, although there is a general perception that sea transport is environmentally preferable to road transport, recent studies are beginning to question this assumption. Moreover, little research has been conducted to quantify environmental aspects and incorporate them into the decision-making processes involved in the modal shift. This study first reviews the existing literature to examine the extent to which environmental aspects are relevant in the modal choice in the case of short sea shipping and motorways of the sea. Related to this, the study also evaluates the role that different agents may play in making decisions about choice of mode, taking into consideration environmental aspects. Secondly, we use the values the European Commission provides to calculate external costs for the Marco Polo freight transport project proposals (call 2013) to estimate the environmental costs for several routes (a total of 72), comparing the use of road haulage with the intermodal option that incorporates the Spanish motorways of the sea. The results of this comparative analysis show that the intermodal option is not always the best choice in environmental terms. Consequently, the traditional environmental argument to justify this alternative must be used carefully.

Implementation of Sustainable Motorways of the Sea Services Multi-Criteria Analysis of a Croatian Port System

“…López-Navarro, in the paper "Environmental Factors and Intermodal Freight Transportation: Analysis of the Decision Bases in the Case of Spanish MoS" [41], evaluates the role that different agents may play in decision-making about the modal choice, considering environmental aspects. Furthermore, the author uses the values the European Commission provides in calculating external costs for the Marco Polo freight transport project proposals (call 2013) to estimate the environmental costs for several routes (a total of 72), comparing the use of road transport with the intermodal option that incorporates the Spanish MoS.…”

Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Intra-National Freight Transport: Measurement and Scenarios for Greater Sustainability in Spain

“…A study of "motorways of railways" in Spain [22,42], for example, argues that reducing transfer times and costs at loading/unloading spots can increase the efficiency of combining railway and sea with trucks for last mile delivery. Others [21,22] have made similar arguments for the promotion of "motorways of the sea", not just for the most intense international deliveries, but also as a substitute for the longest trips within the country by road: for example, between Sevilla, Bilbao, Valencia or Barcelona.…”

“…On the one hand, López-Navarro [21], given the EC's urging of intermodal transport through, for example, the "motorways of the sea", reviewed the existing literature to examine the relevance of environmental considerations to modal choice in the case of short sea shipping and the motorways of the sea. He also used EC-provided values to calculate the external costs of Marco Polo freight transport project proposals to estimate the environmental costs for several routes, comparing the use of road haulage with the intermodal option that incorporates Spanish motorways of the sea.…”

Intermodal transport treatment in developed and developing countries

“…Unapređivanje stanja u saobraćaju, konkretno u slanju robe, dovelo je do boljeg povezivanja različitih i udaljenih tržišta, procvata mnogih ekonomija, boljeg i kvalitetnijeg načina života, ali i određenih problema -15% emisija ugljen-dioksida posledica je transporta, dok je 25% učinak kod stvaranja gasova sa efektom staklene bašte [1]. Promene klime veće od 2°C mogu značajno ugroziti svet kakav poznajemo [2].…”