Comparison and Evaluation of Different Types of Vehicles to Transport Containers within an Intermodal Terminal

Abstract: Due to globalisation, transport policies have been changing and adapting to increase the demands and the needs of the market. Sea ports have a major role in the economic system in which they coordinate the transport of large volumes of cargo in long distances with a high level of productivity. The growth of handling cargo has led to increase congestion in roads because roads are the most used method to transport goods between port and its hinterland. This is the reason why many West European ports are working with train terminals as an alternative form of transport. As part of an intermodal case of study, we have focused on train terminal operations at the port of Barcelona, because currently there is not enough capacity, but it is expected to increase within the next ten years. Moreover, because of the limited geographicalarea, it is important to take in consideration the method for managing the logistics within the container terminal in Barcelona. The objective of this study is to develop a model to analyse and evaluate different types of horizontal transport between the yard and the train terminal at the port of Barcelona in order to identify the most suitable transport system. We compare five different transport systems under three scenarios. The results indicate that some horizontal transport systems are more efficient than others.