B4 (NRP 41) - Market Analysis in Trans-Alpine Freight Transport
Overview
Background & policy context:
The NRP 41 was launched by the Federal Council at the end of 1995 to improve the scientific basis on which Switzerland's traffic problems might be solved, taking into account the growing interconnection with Europe, ecological limits, and economic and social needs.
The NRP 41 aimed to become a think-tank for sustainable transport policy.
Each one of the 54 projects belongs to one of the following six modules:
- A Mobility: Socio-institutional Aspects
- B Mobility: Socio-economical Aspects
- C Environment: Tools and Models for Impact Assessments
- D Political and Economic Strategies and Prerequisites
- E Traffic Management: Potentials and Impacts
- F Technologies: Potentials and Impacts
- M Materials
- S Synthesis Projects
Objectives:
The principal aim of the research was to provide basic elements to support decision-making in the field of promotion of combined transport solutions.
To do so, the available evidence on supplier behaviour, determinants of demand and policy have been systematically discussed and complemented with further empirical work. It has been chosen not to focus on combined transport primarily. Its competitiveness can only be understood in the context of available alternatives.
Moreover, we did not consider rail, road and combined transport as three competing transport modes, but as one characteristic of a transport service that has relevance for the service qualities that can be offered on the market for shipments. Doing so, it was intended to identify critical success factors in every part.
Methodology:
This project represents a synthesis of three projects with one common goal: clarify the position of multimodal services in the market for transalpine freight transport.
A first project (IRE – see working paper M7) inquires the conditions on the supply side and more specifically the strategies of relevant actors in order to identify potentials and weak points of combined transport on transalpine links.
The second project (MecoP – see working paper M8) analyses shipper's behaviour with the goal of identifying critical service qualities that could indicate levers for a policy of promoting this kind of services.
Finally, a third project (INFRAS – see working paper M9) evaluates various policies in view of their chances of success.
To properly identify market potentials, the integral consideration of demand, supply, markets and policies seems decisive. At the same time, such an integrated approach represents a significant challenge.
As a consequence, the relationship among the arguments presented in the three parts is not always evident. Nevertheless, the chosen procedure permits to treat the key issue of transport service qualities in a transversal way in all three projects.
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