Road freight is the dominant mode of transportation in Belgium, accounting for 91% of shipments. The proportion of shipments sent by road and sea freight only amount to 9%, while an insignificant amount is sent by rail. International road haulage is an important part of the sector.
Read MoreIt may be hard to believe in the current climate, but the rail freight business is on the up, reports Chris Lewis
Despite the widely publicised problems surrounding the Channel Tunnel and post-Hatfield crash disruptions, growth in the UK rail freight business over the past 12 months has been around 8%-9% – enough to deliver the government’s target of 80% growth over the next 10 years, says Julia Clarke, head of freight at the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA).
Forwarder Danzas has faith in rail freight, but believes liberalisation and partnerships are the way forward. The argument in favour of intermodal transport is an old and much mooted one. Everybody accepts that Europe needs to get more cargo on to its railways, if only to beat congestion on the motorways, while road transport is still necessary for the to-door leg of a consignment’s journey. The solution to this is clear: combined transport
Read MoreGovernments should be allowed to maintain control of privatised transport companies through “golden shares”, Europe’s transport and energy commissioner has suggested. The intervention by Loyola de Palacio comes despite a case being pursued by the Commission against the UK government for its controls in BAA, the British airports authority.
Read MoreThe development of a flexible, freight-carrying train would take a major stride forward in May and June with the launch of trials involving leading industrial and retail businesses. The socalled Freight Multiple Unit (FMU) project, devised by Exel, Amec and Isotrak, combines a smaller train based on road technologies with track and trace programmes.
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