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On 5 May, the European Commission’s Directorate General for Mobility and Transport (DG MOVE) published a report that compares the performance of different intermodal transhipment technologies in combination with various loading units. The study sheds light on which combinations are most used, how cost- and time efficient and available they are and what their future potential is. The study also analyses the available capacity and limitations of terminals on the TEN-T network.

The study concludes that in general, the standard vertical transhipment technologies (gantry crane/reach stacker) in combination with containers become competitive with road-only transport at distances of around 1000km. At the same time, when looking through the lens of environmental performance, already at 600km most intermodal transport chains would have lower external costs than road-only transport. The container is the most economical loading unit and vertical craning is more efficient than horizontal transhipment, including for semi-trailers, while some innovative technologies that can simultaneously lift several loadings units can reduce handling times in terminals.

The majority (60-80%) of transhipment capacity in the EU is provided by vertical transhipment technologies, followed by RoRo ships (20-35%). Only around 2% of transhipment capacity is today in other technologies. Importantly, the study concludes that by 2030, the transhipment capacity in the EU will not be sufficient to meet the demand of planned network capacity expansion. Therefore, the availability of terminals across the Trans-European Transport (TEN-T) network requires further investments and careful planning, considering that compatible transhipment solutions need to be available in both ends of a rail/waterborne leg. Furthermore, on many parts of the TEN-T network, structural upgrades are necessary to allow transporting semitrailers on train. Most upgrades are necessary in Spain, France and Italy, which together amount to 75% of such sections.

CLECAT welcomes the publication of the study results, which show the need to improve transhipment capacity in the EU, as repeatedly highlighted by CLECAT. In some parts of Europe sufficient terminal infrastructure is either lacking or not correctly used, with the number and distance of terminals differing greatly between the Member States. In that regard, CLECAT recommended in its position paper on combined transport that in the medium term, the cost competitiveness of multimodal transport can be improved through the optimisation of integrated site logistics (24/7 operations), increased efficiency of terminals with further elimination of waiting times, and a reduction of terminal costs. More specifically, terminals should be sufficiently available, responding to the needs of the market. Prior to the construction of new terminals, the upgrading and optimisation of existing facilities and services should be considered. This includes the increase and improvement of terminal capacity across borders, taking into account existing missing links, as well as ensuring that the Rail Freight Corridors are serving the customers in the best way possible. Equally, the construction of new infrastructure should be based on demand and proper ex-ante evaluation of trade flows. As a general rule, such terminals should be multimodal, to allow for their widest use.

Source: European Commission