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The Thruport concept and transmodal rail freight distribution in North America

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  • Rodrigue, Jean-Paul

Abstract

The concept of flow has become particularly important in logistics and freight distribution. From a simple question of capacity, the issues of timing, frequency and punctuality are now of significant relevance in freight movements since they are part of supply chain management strategies. In particular, transport terminals and freight distribution centers have been the major elements permitting improvements in the efficiency and throughput of commodity chains from global production networks to local distribution. Intermodal transportation underlines a growing integration of freight transport systems brought by containerization. Receiving less attention, transshipments are not only an intermodal (flows between modes) issue, but also a transmodal (flows within the components of a mode) one. Rail transportation in North America is particularly illustrative of the challenges of transmodal operations. While containerized rail freight has experienced a substantial growth in recent years, this growth appears to be reaching serious bottlenecks, particularly at locations where transmodal operations have surged, such as Chicago. The paper investigates the concept of a “Thruport”, a facility designed to handle high volume transmodal rail shipments. The Thruport offers the potential of reconciling time and flows in rail freight distribution from which significant financial, time, energy and environmental benefits can be realized. It is argued that the Thruport represents a step in the evolution of intermodal transportation and containerization for inland transport systems.

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  • Rodrigue, Jean-Paul, 2008. "The Thruport concept and transmodal rail freight distribution in North America," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 16(4), pages 233-246.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jotrge:v:16:y:2008:i:4:p:233-246
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2007.08.003
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    2. Meiling He & Jiaren Shen & Xiaohui Wu & Jianqiang Luo, 2018. "Logistics Space: A Literature Review from the Sustainability Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(8), pages 1-24, August.
    3. Giuliano, Genevieve & Kang, Sanggyun & Yuan, Quan, 2016. "Spatial Dynamics of the Logistics Industry and Implications for Freight Flows," Institute of Transportation Studies, Working Paper Series qt94h6t7s9, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Davis.
    4. Erica Varese & Danilo Stefano Marigo & Mariarosaria Lombardi, 2020. "Dry Port: A Review on Concept, Classification, Functionalities and Technological Processes," Logistics, MDPI, vol. 4(4), pages 1-16, November.
    5. Yi, Yoojin & Kim, Euijune, 2018. "Spatial economic impact of road and railroad accessibility on manufacturing output: Inter-modal relationship between road and railroad," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 144-153.
    6. Monios, Jason & Lambert, Bruce, 2013. "The Heartland Intermodal Corridor: public private partnerships and the transformation of institutional settings," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 36-45.
    7. Yuan, Quan & Zhu, Jiren, 2019. "Logistics sprawl in Chinese metropolises: Evidence from Wuhan," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 242-252.
    8. Kang, Sanggyun, 2020. "Warehouse location choice: A case study in Los Angeles, CA," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    9. Kang, Sanggyun, 2020. "Relative logistics sprawl: Measuring changes in the relative distribution from warehouses to logistics businesses and the general population," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    10. Kang, Sanggyun, 2020. "Why do warehouses decentralize more in certain metropolitan areas?," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    11. Giuliano, Genevieve & Kang, Sanggyun, 2018. "Spatial dynamics of the logistics industry: Evidence from California," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 248-258.
    12. Woxenius, Johan & Bergqvist, Rickard, 2011. "Comparing maritime containers and semi-trailers in the context of hinterland transport by rail," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 19(4), pages 680-688.
    13. Alexander T C Onstein & Lóránt A Tavasszy & Jafar Rezaei & Dick A van Damme & Adeline Heitz, 2020. "A sectoral perspective on distribution structure design," Post-Print hal-03884986, HAL.
    14. Yang, Zhiwei & Chen, Xiaohong & Pan, Ruixu & Yuan, Quan, 2022. "Exploring location factors of logistics facilities from a spatiotemporal perspective: A case study from Shanghai," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 100(C).
    15. Ziolkowski, Michael F., 2012. "The ties that bind: freight and passenger high-speed rail are interdependent," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 22(C), pages 292-294.
    16. Neil M. Coe & Martin Hess, 2013. "Economic and social upgrading in global logistics," Global Development Institute Working Paper Series ctg-2013-38, GDI, The University of Manchester.
    17. Genevieve Giuliano & Sanggyun Kang & Quan Yuan, 2018. "Using proxies to describe the metropolitan freight landscape," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 55(6), pages 1346-1363, May.
    18. Thill, Jean-Claude & Lim, Hyunwoo, 2010. "Intermodal containerized shipping in foreign trade and regional accessibility advantages," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 18(4), pages 530-547.
    19. Witte, Patrick & Wiegmans, Bart & Ng, Adolf K.Y., 2019. "A critical review on the evolution and development of inland port research," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 53-61.

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