An Analysis of the Stability of Hinterland Container Transport Cooperation

Citation: Alberto Giudici, Tao Lu, Clemens Thielen, Rob Zuidwijk (2020). An Analysis of the Stability of Hinterland Container Transport Cooperation. Transportation Science, accepted.

Link: TBA

Abstract: We study cooperation among hinterland container transport operators that may share transport capacity and demand in corridors between inland and sea ports. We model this transportation problem as a minimum cost flow problem and assume that operators share the total cost based on a bargaining outcome, which has been proven equivalent to the Shapley value. To examine the stability of such cooperation, we perform a sensitivity analysis of the membership of the Shapley value (the bargaining outcome) to the core (the set of stable outcomes) by leveraging a novel concept of parametric cooperative games. We obtain closed-form solutions for identical players that explicitly characterize the impact of overcapacity on the stability of cooperation. For more general cases, we develop a computational approach based on parametric optimization techniques. The numerical results indicate that our primary analytical result, i.e., that overcapacity undermines stability, is generally valid, and that over-capacitated networks may permit stable cooperation in only a limited range of settings.

Integrated Planning for Multimodal Networks with Disruptions and Customer Service Requirements

Citation: Joris Wagenaar, Ioannis Fragkos, Rob Zuidwijk (2020). Integrated Planning for Multimodal Networks with Disruptions and Customer Service Requirements. Transportation Science, published online.

Link https://doi.org/10.1287/trsc.2020.1006

Abstract Multimodal carriers are third-party logistics providers who utilize multiple modes of transportation to deliver timely door-to-door services to their customers. Notwithstanding frequent service disruptions, customers have ever-increasing expectations for on-time deliveries, posing significant challenges to tactical planning. Inspired by the operations of actual carriers, we study the tactical decision planning of multimodal freight networks, considering operational disruptions, timetabling restrictions, and explicit customer service requirements. Despite our focus on tactical planning, our models integrate long-term commitments by penalizing deviations from strategic goals with last-minute operational planning decisions, which are recourse actions aiming to accommodate service disruptions. After improving the dual bound of our initial formulation, we provide reduced-sized models for the special cases of nonpropagating delays and nonreactive last-minute decisions. This latter formulation is utilized to construct scenario-based and trip-based heuristics, which we combine in a hybrid search loop. Our computational study illustrates that our approach attains high-quality solutions for real-sized instances that are otherwise unsolvable by off-the-shelf optimization software, and a significant improvement over a nontrivial rolling horizon benchmark.

Let the Game Begin: Enhancing Sustainable Collaboration among Actors in Innovation Ecosystems in a Playful Way

Citation: Natasa Roukouni, Heide Lukosch, Alexander Verbraeck, Rob Zuidwijk (2020). Let the Game Begin: Enhancing Sustainable Collaboration among Actors in Innovation Ecosystems in a Playful Way. Sustainability 12: 8494.

Link https://doi.org/10.3390/su12208494

Abstract Logistics and transport systems are complex systems for which sustainable innovations are urgently needed. Serious games are an acknowledged tool for training, learning, and decision making, as well as for helping to introduce innovative concepts for complex systems. Technological innovations for the transport domain that can improve sustainability are usually heavily dependent on the collaboration among actors. A simulation gaming approach can help these actors in understanding the challenges involved, and in finding solutions in a playful, interactive way. Our research approach includes a thorough literature review on games for innovation and collaboration in transport networks, and the development of two dedicated simulation games addressing sustainability innovations for the Port of Rotterdam, the largest seaport in Europe and one of the largest in the world. The two innovation cases are truck platooning and multi-sided digital platforms for barge transportation, both improving the sustainability of hinterland transportation. The games serve as instruments to reveal interactions and tensions among actors, contribute to the interpretation of their behavior, and eventually help all parties to reach a better understanding on how innovation adoption can be fostered, using an innovation ecosystem perspective. We are convinced that serious gaming, by providing a better understanding of the innovation process, will help the implementation of sustainability innovations in complex systems.

Collaborative Fleet Deployment and Routing for Sustainable Transport

Citation Panagiotis Ypsilantis, Rob Zuidwijk (2019). Collaborative Fleet Deployment and Routing for Sustainable Transport. Sustainability 11(20): 5666.

Link https://doi.org/10.3390/su11205666

Abstract Efficient multi-modal transportation in the hinterland of seaport terminals depends on consolidation of container volumes in support of frequent services of high capacity means of transport, such that sustainable multi-modal transport can compete with uni-modal road transport in cost and time. The tactical design of barge scheduled transport services involves fleet selection and routing through the inland waterway network. The resulting network service design should meet expected demand and service time requirements set by the shippers. We develop a tight MILP formulation for the Fleet Size and Mix Vehicle Routing (FSMVRP) especially adapted for the Port-Hinterland multi-modal barge network design. Also, an analytical model is developed to help understand important design trade-offs made. We consider the case of horizontal cooperation of dry port container terminals that share capacity. Our results show that in case of cooperation, both cost savings and service levels are improved, and allow for sustainable multi-modal transport to be competitive with uni-modal truck transport.

Flow consolidation in hinterland container transport: an analysis for perishable and dry cargo

Citation Yun Fan, Behzad Behdani, Jacqueline Bloemhof, Rob Zuidwijk (2019). Flow consolidation in hinterland container transport: an analysis for perishable and dry cargo. Transportation Research Part E 130: 128-160.

Link https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tre.2019.08.011

Abstract The continuously increasing container throughput has created complex operational problems for port operations and port-hinterland transportation. Increase in negative externalities such as air pollution and road congestion are examples of challenging issues. Consolidation of cargo/container flows may help to alleviate the situation by better utilizing the means of transport and containers. Using analytical models for three scenarios – only-trucking (no-consolidation), container consolidation and combined container/cargo consolidation – we discuss the conditions under which the consolidation of flows can be beneficial. The results imply that shipment distance and type of cargo are important factors that affect the performance of flow consolidation in port-hinterland logistics.

Assessing the Technical Efficiency of Intermodal Freight Transport Chains Using a Modified Network DEA Approach

Citation Hamid Saeedi, Rob Zuidwijk, Behzad Behdani, Bart Wiegmans (2019). Assessing the Technical Efficiency of Intermodal Freight Transport Chains Using a Modified Network DEA Approach. Transportation Research Part E 126: 66-86.

Link https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tre.2019.04.003

Abstract This paper presents a modified Network DEA model (NDEA) to measure the performance of intermodal freight transport (IFT) chains and to find the sources of inefficiencies. The model addresses two challenges in the application of NDEA to the IFT domain: first, the chains may differ in the number of divisions (i.e., transshipment/transportation activities); and second, one needs to define a relevant intermediate service. For purposes of illustration, the model is applied to a particular European IFT network for which the inefficient transport/transshipment segments are identified and discussed.

The Role of Customs in Securing Containerized Global Supply Chains

Citation Morteza Pourakbar and Rob Zuidwijk (2018). The Role of Customs in Securing Containerized Global Supply Chains. European Journal of Operational Research 271(1): 331-340

Link https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejor.2018.05.012

Abstract Customs has to deal with a massive number of containers arriving at ports. This massive flow of cargo provides an opportunity for organized crime infiltration. Risk management and the security of the supply chain has become a top priority for Customs administrations and for private firms. In this paper, we develop models that allow Customs to optimize its inspection process to target high-risk containers without hindering the flow of safe containers with extra delays at ports. The model characterizes optimal informational and physical inspection rates as a function of the risk factors attributed to containers. We use this model to analyze how an effective public–private partnership for risk and security management can be established between Customs and private firms.

Planning of truck platoons: A literature review and directions for future research

Citation Anirudh Kishore Bhoopalam, Niels Agatz, Rob Zuidwijk (2017). Planning of truck platoons: A literature review and directions for future research. Transportation Research Part B. Published online November 10, 2017.

Link https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trb.2017.10.016

Abstract A truck platoon is a set of virtually linked trucks that drive closely behind one another using automated driving technology. Benefits of truck platooning include cost savings, reduced emissions, and more efficient use of road capacity. To fully reap these benefits in the initial phases of technology deployment, careful planning of platoons based on trucks’ itineraries and time schedules is required. This paper provides a framework to classify various new transportation planning problems that arise in truck platooning, surveys relevant operations research models for these problems in the literature and identifies directions for future research.

Crowdsourced Delivery — A Dynamic Pickup and Delivery Problem with Ad-Hoc Drivers

Citation Alp Arslan, Niels Agatz, Leo Kroon, Rob Zuidwijk (2019). Crowdsourced Delivery — A Dynamic Pickup and Delivery Problem with Ad-Hoc Drivers. Transportation Science 53(1): 222-235.

Link https://doi.org/10.1287/trsc.2017.0803

Abstract The trend toward shorter delivery lead times reduces operational efficiency and increases transportation costs for Internet retailers. However, mobile technology creates new opportunities to organize the last mile. In this paper, we study the concept of crowdsourced delivery that aims to use excess capacity on journeys that already take place. We consider a service platform that automatically creates matches between parcel delivery tasks and ad hoc drivers. The platform also operates a fleet of dedicated vehicles to serve the tasks that cannot be served by the ad hoc drivers. The matching of tasks, drivers, and dedicated vehicles in real time gives rise to a new variant of the dynamic pickup and delivery problem. We propose a rolling horizon framework and develop an exact solution approach to solve the matching problem each time new information becomes available. To investigate the potential benefit of crowdsourced delivery, we conduct a wide range of computational experiments. The experiments provide insights into the viability of crowdsourced delivery under various assumptions about the behavior of the ad hoc drivers. The results suggest that the use of ad hoc drivers has the potential to make the last mile more cost-efficient and can provide system-wide vehicle-mile savings up to 37% compared to a traditional delivery system with dedicated vehicles.

European intermodal freight transport network: Market structure analysis

Citation Hamid Saeedi, Bart Wiegmans, Behzad Behdani, Rob Zuidwijk (2017). European intermodal freight transport network: Market structure analysis. Journal of Transport Geography 60(1): 141-154.

Link http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2017.03.002

Abstract The analysis of market structure and concentration measures for the Intermodal Freight Transport (IFT) market is important to avoid market failure and to find the areas for policy making to promote IFT market share. This analysis can be performed for separate segments, for example, the market for transshipment service or the market for main-haulage service. However, due to the multistage characteristic of IFT service, the segmental analysis gives an incomplete view of the IFT market at the network level. In a previous paper (Saeedi et al., 2017), we present the Intermodal Freight Transport Market Structure (IFTMS) model to conduct a network-based study of the IFTMS in which distinctive actors (i.e., pre/post haulage operators, terminals, rail/barge operators, transport chains, and corridors) are competing at different levels inside distinctive markets to deliver an integrated IFT service. There are two main challenges in the application of IFTMS model in real cases, for example, the European IFT network. First, the definition of the geographical and spatial border of the transshipment market areas is needed to determine which actors are potentially competing for a specific service demand. The second challenge is the lack of disaggregated data and the consistency of existing data in nodes (i.e., the transshipment areas) and links (i.e., the rail and barge operators). To cope with these challenges, we develop a four-step methodology in which a model-based approach is used to define the geographic boundaries of the transshipment submarkets and provide detailed and consistent data for market analysis. We also apply the IFTMS model to study the market structure of European intermodal network. Our analysis shows that the majority of transshipment markets as well as main-haulage markets are highly concentrated markets. The corridor markets – which include the IFT chains – are unconcentrated markets. Furthermore, the majority of corridors in the European Union are inside highly concentrated origin-destination markets.