Inland Freight Transport System - Assignment Example

INLAND FREIGHT TRANSPORT SYSTEMS A BRIEF STUDY OF THE CHALLENGES OF THE SYSTEM OPERATORS AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE SYSTEMS WITHIN THE CONSTRAINTS OF SOCIO-ECONOMICAL, POLITICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS CONTENTS S/No Subject Page Executive Summary 2 1.0 Introduction 3 2.0 Different Modes of Inland Freight Transport 4 3.0. Common Legal Responsibilities of the Freight System 5 Operators and Provision of Regulatory systems for The Freight Transportation 4.0 Social, Economic, Political and Environmental Factors- 7 Effect on The Operation of Inland Freight Systems 4.1 Socio Economic Consideration 8 4.2 Environmental Impact of Transport Systems 8 4.3 Political Considerations 9 5.0 Trends in the Inland Transport Systems in the Past Decade And Their Future Development 10 5.1 Past Trends 10 5.2 Future Development 10 6.0 Conclusion 11 7.0. References 12 Web Links EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This paper envisages bringing out the operational challenges faced by the Inland Freight System Operators in Europe as well as in UK, including the Governmental regulations concerning their licensing, record keeping and other measures to ensure the conduct of a safe transport system, the effects of various external forces on their operation and a brief study of how the systems performed in the past decade and their futuristic plans. INLAND FREIGHT TRANSPORT SYSTEMS A BRIEF STUDY OF THE CHALLENGES OF THE SYSTEM OPERATORS AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE SYSTEMS WITHIN THE CONSTRAINTS OF SOCIO-ECONOMICAL, POLITICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS 1.0 INTRODUCTION The various modes of inland freight systems like rail, highways and water ways including sea and rivers have an important role to play in the development of an economy. With the globalization of the world business, it has become an absolute necessity to ensure that the supply chain is well maintained so that the goods and services travel across continents swiftly without much loss of time and at the same time ensuring economy in the transportation costs. This has led to the development of new and innovative modes of transport systems not only for intercontinental transportation but also for the inland movements. This paper presents the role of different modes of inland transport in the UK and in Europe with particular reference to the infrastructure development and use, analysis of the problems relating to the handling of internal freight traffic by the freight system operators, legal and social responsibilities of the freight transport operators, recent trends and future prospects of the internal freight systems with specific reference to the economic climate and technological developments. 2.0 DIFFERENT MODES OF INLAND FREIGHT TRANSPORT: The different forms of inland freight transportation in UK and Europe takes the form of: Road freight Transport including containerized transportation in Highways Rail Transport Inland Waterways consisting of transportation through Rivers and coastal shipping waterways. The road haulage industry is an essential part of the European economy, playing a pivotal role in domestic and international commerce. Most goods move reliably, efficiently and safely by road and this are not going to change dramatically in the near future. However there are certain issues which are basically connected with the road transport and need attention. These are furthering the efficiency, environmental factors, safety aspects, social issues and infrastructural developments. Freight movement within Western Europe has been a growing market for many years. But, due to lower volume of transportation of heavy goods such as coal and steel, the traditional rail freight market suffered a decline. However, the overall growth of the freight markets has enabled the rail freight market to maintain its volume in recent years. Even though rail freight has could maintain its volume somehow, it has lost market share to other modes and not least to road which otherwise could have developed the rail freight segment along with the growth of different economies... All types of waterway have some potential for use for freight transport. Generally the large waterways with access to ports and the coast will have the greatest potential for carrying significant volumes of freight. The broad water ways and narrow canals are less suitable but may nevertheless be suitable for localized specialized markets. With the enlargement of the European Union inland waterway transport will play a very important role in the internal market. Many of the member countries of EU have navigable waterways which can be used for freight transport. Proper maintenance of the existing waterway infrastructure, the removal of the major bottlenecks and the realization of the missing links is a precondition to use the possibilities of the waterborne transport. 3.0 COMMON LEGAL RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE FREIGHT SYSTEM OPERATORS AND PROVISIONS OF REGULATORY SYSTEM FOR THE FREIGHT TRANSPORTATION: In order to maintain and operate the freight transport system safely, the operator of the system should adhere to certain basic requirements of safety as provided by the Government. These are provided in the interests of the general public who are using the freight transport systems. By providing various regulatory and licensing measures, the conduct of the business of the fright transporter is closely monitored to ensure that he conducts his business safely and legally. The Vehicle and Operator Service Agency shortly known as VOSA of UK has made a guideline book detailing various regulatory measures the operator has to adopt and the punishments, if such measures are not taken care of. The Department for Transport along with VOSA has prescribed the rules and regulations for issuance of licenses to the Drivers. The following are the salient features of the regulatory measures and the legal liabilities of the service provider for the non-compliance of the regulatory measures: On the grant of an operator’s licence, the operator gives a written undertaking to the Traffic Commissioner that he among other matters will have a working system in place to make sure that the drivers abide by the drivers’ hours/record keeping regulations and that the vehicles will be maintained properly. It is obligatory on the part of the person holding the Operator’s licence to report within 28 days, any convictions or prohibitions relating to the drivers and any event affecting the good standing of the operator, such as an authorized vehicle being seized by the Customs or Excise when found to be of using illegal fuel. An employer must give as far as is reasonable a safe, risk-free workplace and systems of work. The employer must carry out sufficient risk assessment, record the significant findings and make sure that employees are given information, instruction, training and supervision to ensure their safety. The Guide lines provide for the maximum seating capacity in the case of Passenger Carrying Vehicles and the maximum weight and loading regulations in the case of Large Goods Vehicles which are to be strictly adhered to. The operator must comply with European and domestic regulations concerning the drivers’ hours, drivers’ licenses, and operator licensing as it may be applicable. It is also a legal liability that the equipment is maintained in working order and keeps documentation relating to drivers and vehicles. All records like Tachograph charts, duty rosters must be kept for at least one year from the date of their use and operators must carry out sample checks on them as often as necessary to monitor driver compliance. All the records and documents kept by the operator are subject to inspection by the Traffic Commissioner at any time. For the non-compliance of these as well as other regulations contained in the guide lines and with respect to the issuance and renewal of drivers licence, the Traffic Commissioner may revoke, suspend or curtail the operator’s lcence. They may also impose various conditions on the way the operator has to operate the authorized vehicles. The Traffic commissioner may also suspend or revoke a driver’s vocational licence for any non-compliance of the provisions with respect to the drivers’ hours rules and other driving regulations. The Traffic commissioner has the authority to impound the vehicle and also the goods that are being carried by the vehicle, if the operator is found to be not following any of the specified regulatory measures. Similarly the vehicle can be impounded along with the goods if the driver is driving the vehicle when his licence is expired, cancelled or suspended for any reason. The abovementioned regulatory measures are only some of the important ones and the guidelines in association with the Department of Transport has issued various other guidelines governing the employment, service conditions of drivers, safe use of vehicles and loading guidelines and checking measures for the compliance. 4.0 SOCIAL, ECONOMIC, POLITICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS -EFFECT ON THE OPERATION OF INLAND FREIGHT SYSTEMS Europe’s transport policy has been often characterized by the standards of liberalization and harmonization over the years. This has slowly shaped up the inland freight system into the present day’s position. Globalization and the concept of wider Europe with the enlargement of the European Union has created further challenges. The fast growth of freight transport driven to a large extent by economic decisions contributes to growth and employment but also causes congestion, accidents, noise, pollution, increased reliance on imported fossil fuels and energy loss. Infrastructure resources are limited and any disruption in the supply chain has necessarily a negative impact on the EU economy. Without adequate measures, the situation will continue worsening and increasingly undermine Europe’s competitiveness and the environment we live in. The factors that usually affect the inland freight systems relate to social, economic, political and environmental considerations prevalent in the respective countries and in the continent as a whole. Some of these issues are discussed below: 4.1 SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONSIDERATIONS: Transport is indispensable for the well functioning and development of economic activities, for the production and distribution of goods and services as well as for trade. Transport has therefore been at the very basis of the economic development in west European countries in the past decades contributing to the economic prosperity and social wellbeing of the countries. In particular it has played a most strategic role in the opening up of peripheral and isolated European countries and regions and in their integration in to national European and a wider global economy. The transport sector has become an important sector of the economic activity in Western European countries where it accounts for 7% of the GDP and for more than 10% of employment. Furthermore the transport equipment industry in particular the motor vehicle industry is one of the most important and dynamic industrial sectors in many European countries. For these reasons transport has always been a strategic area of responsibility of the Governments which have played a major role in financing mobility and accessibility including through the supply of transport services. 4.2 ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF TRANSPORT SYSTEMS: The inland transport system especially the freight transport has led to considerable environmental and health concerns. Transport consumes energy and causes air, water, and soil and sea pollutions. With regard to air pollution, transport is responsible for emission of carbon-di-oxide and other gases which cause injury to health and well being of the people. Road congestions particularly in large urban areas and along main transport corridors in a majority of European countries aggravates the situation, Noise in the vicinity of airports also raises some concern. Transport infrastructures badly needed in Central and Eastern European and in the peripheral European countries for development, adversely affect the environment through land taking and visual intrusion and in some other countries the construction of new infrastructures faces increasing opposition. Of all modes of inland transport, road transport is clearly the mode which has the bigger environmental impact in terms of energy consumption and air pollution. Road transport is responsible for all air pollutants. Although rail and inland waterway transport account for relatively less environmental pollutions, railways cause noise and vibrations but also in pollution directly and indirectly. Inland navigation causes water and air pollutions. Finally the transportation of dangerous goods represents a potential risk for the environment through accidents. 4.3 POLITICAL CONSIDERATIONS: The impact of political considerations on the transport systems are influenced by the various existing organizational structures like deregulations, limited competitions and regulations. The legal framework of revenue risks for the transport operators have also contributed to the positive or negative growth of the transport systems. These considerations are based upon the political situations prevailing in the respective member countries of the European Union. The transport sector clearly demonstrates the importance of interlinking political concepts at European levels and ensuring that they correspond with the national and international measures. The interaction of the diverse political instruments has a decisive effect on the competitiveness of the different transport modes. This must be reflected in any decisions of the governments while implementing any combined transport policy. For example, a unilateral decision to exempt some individual transport modes from taxes and other levies on energy may distort competition and hamper the development of the transport systems. 5.0 TRENDS IN THE INLAND TRANSPORT SYSTEMS IN THE PAST DECADES AND THEIR FUTURE DEVELOPMENT: The past tends in the Inland transport systems were greatly influenced by factors of efficiency, environmental, safety, social and infrastructural issues. It is impossible to comprehend the precise effects of such factors on the growth of the transport modes. 5.1 PAST TRENDS: Rapid and continuous growth of road transport and stagnation of other modes was the scenario witnessed by the freight transport market in the past few decades by Europe. The road transport has almost trebled since 1970 in Western Europe. In Central and Eastern Europe the road mode is shortly going to become dominant. The rate of growth of freight has followed closely to that of the economy, though road freight has grown faster. The underlying reasons for these developments include the growth in trade, the creation of the single European market and shifts in societal and industrial structure and habits. The dominance of the road transport is explained by some of these general factors but also by its flexibility and customer oriented qualities. 5.2 FUTURE DEVELOPMENT: What will be the effect of the factors that influenced the inland transport systems in the past on the future developments of the transport sector; the answer is quite subjective and it will depend on the following factors: Scale of advancement of economic specialization and material sourcing Among other changes on the logistics, trends including economization on warehousing costs Dispersion of wholesale and retail activities Growth in trade opportunities due to development of new products, markets and customers globally. Individual country forecasts confirm that countries like France, Germany and Italy expect a growth rate of 30-50% up to 2010. There is a growing argument that due to the continued moves of the economies towards service the intensity for carriage of goods may come down. This hypothesis can not be ruled out as unreasonable. 6.0 CONCLUSION On a consideration of various factors affecting the inland freight transport systems, it evolves that making consistent efforts in several directions but principally on the social and environmental components is of prime importance, since they have been dealt with only quite inadequately so far. The various Governments have a considerable role to play in this direction. Economic issues of course remain also important and real barriers to the economic efficiency need to be reduced on a continuous basis. Word count: 2,406 Reference List: 1. Vehicles and Operator Services Agency VOSA (2005) [online] Available from: http://www.vosa.gov.uk (Accessed: 04th January 2007) 2. Drivers and Vehicles Licensing Agency DVLA (2005) Drivers information page: bus, lorry, operators and drivers information. [online] Available from: http://www.dvla.gov.uk/drivers/operators info.htm (Accessed: 04th January 2007 3. A Study on the Development of Intermodal Freight Transport between Belgium and Bulgaria [online] Available from: http://cabri-volga.org/DOC/EG4/IntermodalFreightTransportbyBelgiumandBulgaria.pdf (Accessed: 04th January 2007) 4. Select committee on European Union Fourth Report (2005) [online] Available from: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200405/ldselect/ldeucom/52/5203.htm (Accessed: 04th January 2007) 5. Transport Energy Best Practice: Planning for Freight on inland Waterways (2004) [online] Available from: http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_freight/documents/page/dft_freight035517.pdf (Accessed: 04th January 2007) 6. European Conference of Ministers of Transport: Road Freight Trasport in Europe Some policy concerns and Challenges (1999) [online] Available from: http://www.cemt.org/online/speeches/JSver99.pdf (Accessed: 04th January 2007) 7. Commission of the European Communities: Communication from the commission to the council, The European Parliament, the European Economic and Social committee and the Committee of the Regions (2006) [online] Available from: http://ec.europa.eu/transport/logistics/overview/doc/2006_06_28_communication_en. PDF (Accessed: 04th January 2007) 8. Department of Economic and Social Affairs: Commission on Sustainable Development Ninth Session (2001) [online] Available from: http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/csd/csd9_bp11.pdf (Accessed: 04th January 2007) 9. Portal: Summary of Projects and results from topic: Regulatory Framework in Public Transport: [online] Available from: http://eu-portal.net/material/materials/summary_kt1b.pdf (Accessed: 04th January 2007) 10. Competitive Europe: Creating Framework conditions for sustainable Transport (2006) Available from : http://www.db.de/site/shared/en/file__attachements/position__papers/umweltsymposiumbruessel__position__paper.pdf (Accessed: 04th January 2007) Read More