Delft University of Technology
FACULTY MECHANICAL, MARITIME AND MATERIALS ENGINEERING
Department Marine and Transport Technology Mekelweg 2 2628 CD Delft the Netherlands Phone +31 (0)15-2782889 Fax +31 (0)15-2781397 www.mtt.tudelft.nl
This report consists of 148 pages. It may only be reproduced literally and as a whole. For commercial purposes only with written authorization of Delft University of Technology. Requests for consult are only taken into consideration under the condition that the applicant denies all legal rights on liabilities concerning the contents of the advice.
Specialization: Transport Engineering and Logistics Report number: 2012.TEL.7719
Title: Optimization to reduce waiting times at locks
Author: J. J. S. Hengeveld
Title (in Dutch): Optimalisatie voor kortere wachttijden bij sluizen. Assignment: Master thesis
Confidential: no
Initiator: Dr. R. R. Negenborn
Supervisors: Dr. R. R. Negenborn , Prof. Dr. ir. G. Lodewijks
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Summary
Cargo transport is important for supplies of goods and food worldwide. The goods and food are transported by inland transport modes, like road, railway and inland waterway transport. Due to a growth in world population the demand of goods and food increase, which results in an increase in cargo transport. More transport leads to more traffic on roads, railway and inland waterways. Roads and railways are at their limits of capacity, while inland waterways have the ability for an increase of waterway traffic. The European waterway network for inland transport is wide and connects sea ports and the European hinterland with each other. While inland waterway transport is cheaper and slower compared to road and railway transport, it is also less reliable than the other transport modes. The reliability is the ability to perform and maintain the agreements made between actors involved in the cargo transport during normal circumstances, as well as during unexpected circumstances, like delays. A disadvantage for inland waterway navigation is the locks in the waterway network. Locks maintain the water on a certain level, so that inland vessels can navigate without the risk of grounding. Locks also cause congestions when the lock capacity is lower than the amount of vessels that want to pass the lock during a certain time. These congestions cause delays for the vessels, which do not increase the reliability of the waterway transport mode. To stimulate the inland waterway transport, so that cargo transport over water will become more compatible with road and railway transport, the reliability for inland waterway transport must be increased. This can be done by decreasing the waiting times at the locks in the waterways.
The interarrival times of inland vessels have an influence on the waiting times for vessels at locks. So when the arrival times of vessels at a lock are controlled, the waiting times can be controlled. A simulation model is designed to simulate what the effect of controlled arrivals of vessels is on the waiting time at locks. The simulation model is able to adjust the velocities of all vessels that navigate on the waterway towards the lock. With the adjustments in velocity of a vessels, the arrival time of that vessel is controlled by the model. The adjustment in velocity can let the vessel navigate faster and slower. When a vessel slows down it´s travel time on the waterway increases. A lower velocity and a longer travel time means that the fuel costs decrease and the operation time increases. That could result in a higher total travel costs. Therefore the simulation model can minimize the waiting times or the travel costs. With the minimization of costs the waiting time is minimized as well, due to the fixed operating costs a vessel has, which are the travel costs without fuel costs. Variables in the simulation model are the length of the controlled waterway, the service time of the lock and the lock capacity. The length of the controlled waterway determines the size of the system and the area where the vessels are controlled, the service time is the time it takes to pass the lock and the lock capacity determines the maximum number of vessels that can enter the lock chamber during one service run. As an input for the simulation model each vessel has its own entering velocity and entering time during a day. The entering velocities of the vessel are between 10 and 20 km/h and can be adjusted between 5 km/h and 110% of the entering velocity of the vessel. The entering time is distributed by a Weibull distribution. Since inland waterway transport is not yet a full 24/7 industry, the distribution is in such way that the majority of the daily vessels that pass the lock will enter the system between 06:00 and 20:00 hour. The settings used for the variables in the simulations are based on situations at four locks between the two largest sea ports in Europe, which are Rotterdam and Antwerp. The locks are the Volkerak, Krammer, Hansweert and Kreekrak lock and the waiting times at those lock are expected to be as long as 3 hours in the next decade.
The output of the simulation model are waiting times at the lock and the total travel costs for each vessel in an optimized situation, which is a situation with minimized waiting time or travel costs. Optimized results of the simulation model are compared with the simulations that represent the four locks with the expected waiting times. The simulation model shows a reduction in waiting times of more than 80% compared to the expected waiting times for the next decade. If this can be achieved in reality the inland waterway transport mode can be stimulated due to smaller unexpected delays and an increased reliability.
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7
Samenvatting (in Dutch)
Transport is belangrijk voor de wereldwijde aanvoer van goederen en voedsel. De goederen en voedsel worden getransporteerd via wegen, spoorwegen en binnenwateren. Door een toename in wereldpopulatie groeit de vraag naar goederen en voedsel, wat resulteert in een groei in transport. Meer transport leidt tot meer verkeer op de verschillende wegen en wateren. Daar waar wegen en spoorwegen de limiet van hun capaciteit bereiken, hebben binnenwateren nog mogelijkheden hebben voor groei. Het Europese netwerk voor de binnenvaart is uitgebreid en verbindt zeehavens en havens in het achterland met elkaar. Transport over water is goedkoper en langzamer dan transport over de weg of spoorweg, daarnaast is het een minder betrouwbare vorm van transport. De betrouwbaarheid wordt bepaald door het vermogen zich te houden aan afspraken tussen partijen in de transport sector, zowel gedurende normale omstandigheden als tijdens onverwachte omstandigheden, zoals vertragingen. Een nadeel voor de binnenvaart is de aanwezigheid van sluizen in the waterwegen. Sluizen behouden een bepaald waterniveau, zodat binnenvaartschepen kunnen varen zonder de kans vast te lopen. Bij sluizen kunnen ook files ontstaan wanneer er meer schepen de sluis willen passeren dan de sluis aan kan. Deze files veroorzaken vertragingen voor de binnenvaartschepen, iets dat de betrouwbaarheid van de binnenvaart niet verbetert. Om transport via de binnenvaart te stimuleren, zodat de binnenvaart concurrerend wordt met de andere vormen van transport, moet de betrouwbaarheid vergroot worden. Dit kan behaald worden door de wachttijden bij de sluizen te verkleinen.
De aankomsttijden van schepen hebben een invloed op de wachttijden bij de sluizen. Wanneer de aankomsten van binnenvaartschepen gereguleerd worden is het mogelijk de wachttijden te controleren. Een simulatiemodel kan de effecten van gereguleerde aankomsttijden van schepen simuleren. Het simulatiemodel kan de snelheden van elk binnenvaartschip aanpassen dat navigeert op de wateren binnen het systeem van het simulatiemodel. De aanpassingen kunnen elk schip sneller en langzamer laten varen. Wanneer een schip vaart mindert wordt de reistijd langer. Een lagere snelheden en een langere reistijd hebben een lager brandstofverbruik en hogere operationele kosten tot gevolg. Om daar rekening mee te houden kan het simulatiemodel zowel de wachttijden als de totale reiskosten minimaliseren. Bij het minimaliseren van de kosten worden ook de wachttijden geminimaliseerd, aangezien wachttijd geld kost. Variabelen in het simulatiemodel zijn de lengte van de waterweg in het systeem, de schuttijd en de sluiscapaciteit. De lengte van de waterweg in het systeem geeft aan hoever vóór de sluis de snelheid van een schip aangepast kan worden, de schuttijd is de tijd die nodig is om een schip de sluis te laten passeren en sluiscapaciteit geeft het maximaal aantal schepen aan dat in een sluis past tijdens één schutting.
Alle schepen in het model hebben een eigen snelheid en tijd waarmee ze het systeem binnenkomen. De snelheden liggen tussen de 10 en 20 km/h en kunnen worden aangepast tussen de 5 km/h en 110% van de snelheid waarmee een schip het systeem binnenkomt. De tijden waarop schepen het systeem binnenkomen zijn verdeeld met een Weibull verdeling. Omdat de gehele binnenvaart nog niet een 24 uur economie is laat de verdeling het merendeel van de schepen binnenkomen tussen 6 uur ’s ochtends en 8 uur ’s avonds. De gebruikte instellingen voor de variabelen in het model zijn gebaseerd op situaties van vier sluizen tussen Rotterdam en Antwerpen, de twee grootste zeehaven van Europa. De sluizen zijn de Volkerak, Krammer, Hansweert en Kreekrak en verwachtingen zijn dat de wachttijden bij de sluizen kunnen oplopen tot 3 uur in de komende jaren.
De output van het simulatiemodel zijn de wachttijden en reiskosten voor elk binnenvaartschip in de geoptimaliseerde situatie, dat de situatie is waarin de wachttijden of kosten geminimaliseerd zijn. De wachttijden van de geoptimaliseerde simulaties worden vergeleken met de verwachten wachttijden bij de sluizen tussen Rotterdam en Antwerpen. Het simulatiemodel laat wachttijden zien die tot 80% lager zijn dan de verwachte wachttijden bij de vier sluizen. Als deze verlagingen in wachttijden in de praktijk behaald kunnen worden kan transport via de binnenvaart gestimuleerd worden door kleinere onverwachte vertragingen en een grotere betrouwbaarheid.
9
Contents
Summary ... 5
Samenvatting (in Dutch) ... 7
1. Introduction... 11
1.1 The hinterland and hinterland connections ... 11
1.2 Future growth ... 12
1.3 Research in inland waterway transport ... 12
1.4 Research question ... 14
1.5 Research approach ... 14
2. Inland waterway systems ... 17
2.1 Transport ... 17
2.1.1 Cargo transport ... 17
2.1.2 Transport modes ... 19
2.1.3 Future inland transport ... 22
2.2 Inland vessels... 23
2.2.1 CEMT classes ... 24
2.2.2 Vessel velocities ... 26
2.2.3 Fuel consumption and fuel costs ... 27
2.2.4 Operating costs ... 29
2.3 Waterway networks ... 31
2.3.1 The waterways ... 31
2.3.2 Communication in inland waterways ... 32
2.3.3 Water levels ... 34
2.4 Locks ... 36
2.4.1 Operation of locks ... 36
2.4.2 Advantages of locks ... 37
2.4.3 Disadvantages of locks ... 37
2.5 Rotterdam – Antwerp connection ... 38
2.5.1 The connection ... 39
2.5.2 Lock waiting times ... 40
2.6 Discussion and concluding remarks ... 44
3. Lock approaching models ... 45
3.1 Queuing model ... 45
3.1.1 Distributions in queuing theory ... 45
3.1.2 Linking queuing theory to inland vessel navigation ... 48
3.1.3 The M/M/s queuing theory ... 48
3.1.4 Queuing theory results ... 50
3.2 Controlled arrival model ... 52
3.2.1 Water level control model ... 52
3.2.2 Vessel approach control model ... 54
3.2.3 Linking controlled arrival model with the queuing model ... 56
3. 3 Simulation model ... 58
3.3.1 Model properties ... 58
3.3.2 Goal of the model ... 59
3.3.4 Simulation rules ... 62
3.3.5 Simulation constraints ... 64
3.3.6 Optimization of arrivals ... 65
3.4 Costs versus waiting time ... 66
3.5 Discussion and concluding remarks ... 66
4. Simulation model results ... 67
4.1 Simulation input... 67
4.1.1 Entering time and velocity ... 67
4.1.2 Settings of variables ... 69
4.1.3 Settings in the simulation model ... 71
4.1.4 Expectations of the simulations ... 71
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4.2.1 Simulation data ... 72
4.2.2 Comparison between simulation and expectations for 2020 ... 75
4.3 Simulation Results – waiting times... 77
4.3.1 Generated entering times ... 77
4.3.2 Effects caused by different length of the controlled waterway ... 79
4.3.3 Effects caused by different lock capacities ... 97
4.3.4 Effects caused by different service times ... 107
4.4 Simulation Results – costs ... 117
4.4.1 Effects caused by different length of the controlled waterway ... 117
4.4.2 Effects caused by different lock capacities ... 122
4.4.3 Effects caused by different service times ... 128
4.5 Side-effects of optimizing the waiting times ... 132
4.5.1 Occupation rate of the lock chamber ... 133
4.5.2 Distribution of waiting times ... 134
4.6 Discussion and concluding remarks ... 135
5. Conclusions and recommendations ... 137
5.1 Conclusions ... 137
5.2 Recommendations for future research ... 138
References ... 141
Introduction
11
1.
Introduction
In this thesis we discuss some major problems in inland waterway transport, which are the reliability and the long travel times compared to road and railway transport. In section 1.1 we will discuss the importance of the waterways in Europe and in The Netherlands. In section 1.2 we will discuss the future growth for the port of Rotterdam, which gives an indication for the hinterland transport from the port, and the expectations for future inland waterway transport, made by the Dutch government. The expected growth in cargo transport and the current congestion on roads and railways have led to stimulation programs for waterway transport, which we will discuss in section 1.3. The research questions are discussed in section 1.4.
1.1 The hinterland and hinterland connections
Two main European waterways, the Rhine and Meuse, flow through The Netherlands, where the waterways meet the open sea, the North sea. Inland ports are connected to these rivers in The Netherlands, Germany and Belgium, but also in France, Swiss and Austria. So for the accessibility of these inland ports, the waterways in The Netherlands are vital for cargo transport between these inland ports and sea ports, like the ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp. With the presence of the port of Rotterdam and parts of the main European waterways, The Netherlands has an important geographical and economical position for cargo transport in Europe. As can be seen in Figure 1.1, the main European waterways flow through The Netherlands before reaching the open sea.
Figure 1.1 Waterways in North West Europe with The Netherlands and the port of Rotterdam located at the red dot [1].
The port of Rotterdam is the largest port in Europe and one of the largest in the world considering the amount of tonnage that is transhipped per year. According to [1] the port of Rotterdam transhipped 433 million tons of cargo in 2011. Cargo from the port of Rotterdam is partly transported to other sea ports and partly transported to the hinterland. The cargo for the hinterland is transported by different transport modes, like inland barges, trains and trucks. That leads to traffic on respectively waterways, railways and roads and in The Netherlands and Europe. In contrast to waterways, railways and roads are not only used for cargo transport, but also for passenger transport in the form of cars, busses and passenger trains. Cargo transport is partly responsible for congestions on roads and railways, especially during rush hours in the morning and evening. Without major infrastructural adjustments, road and railway transport will reach their capacity limits in the next decades, while waterway transport still has unused capacity left. Together with expectations for an increase in cargo transport
Optimization to reduce waiting times at locks
12
in the future, waterway transport must be stimulated and improved to be an alternative for road and railway transport.
1.2 Future growth
Expectations made by [1] and [2] show the growth for the next decades. Cargo transport will increase, regardless of the economic future. The growth for the port of Rotterdam will be between 10% and 74% for the year 2030. This is the growth of the port of Rotterdam, which includes cargo with destinations in the hinterland and transhipment of cargo between two sea going vessels. In [2], the Dutch government has her expectations for the inland waterway transport between a contraction of 10% and a growth of 40% for the year 2030. Although percentages of growth diver, but both sources expect an increase of at least 10% in the share for container transport over inland waterways, which can be seen in Figure 1.2 (left). In the next decades, container transport will increase its share for waterway transport from 40% to 45%.
An increase of product demand by consumers in the Western world and in upcoming economies has resulted in a growth in cargo transport. To meet that demand in North West Europe, the Maasvlakte 2 is build, a new part of the port of Rotterdam which increases the ports surface with 20%. According to [1], container transport to the hinterland is expected to increase with 350% in the next 25 years, which can be seen in Figure 1.2 (right).
Figure 1.2 Modal share for container transport for hinterland connections from the port of Rotterdam in percentage (left) and transport volume in million TEU (right) [1].
The growth in container transport is made possible by the fact that the transport volume of raw materials will decrease and the transport volume of semi manufactured products in containers will increase. Beside the growth of container transport, containers have standard dimensions, like twenty feet long containers (TEU) and forty feet long containers. For that reason containers can be transported by different modes quite easily, which makes containers ideal for multi modal transport or a modal shift from road to waterway transport.
The expectations of the growth in inland waterway transport will not occur spontaneously without influence and stimulation from the outside. So, to realize the expectations, the Dutch government and the port of Rotterdam developed a program for the waterway transport to stimulate and improve this transport mode. This program is discussed in the next section.
1.3 Research in inland waterway transport
The Dutch government is beware of the importance of inland waterway transport in future hinterland transport of cargo in The Netherlands. Due to the build of Maasvlakte 2, which is an expansion of the port of Rotterdam, and the increasing amounts of transported cargo, alternatives for road transport
Introduction
13 must be stimulated. To stimulate waterway transport a program is set up called Impuls for Dynamic Traffic management on Waterways (Impuls Dynamische Verkeersmanagement Vaarwegen or IDVV in Dutch) [2]. This program focusses on three tracks, which are:
1. Improve operational traffc management
2. Information exchange between actors in the waterway transport chain 3. Knowledge in developments in waterways transport
Track 1 is about collecting information of vessels, like velocity, route, destination and cargo type, and making that information available for all other waterway traffic. Communication systems, like the Automatic Identification System, will be expanded with traffic services that provide information about congestions. With this information shippers can decide to travel via an other route to their destination. Al the information is collected and distributed by one waterway traffic management, organized by the Dutch government.
The logistic chain of waterway transport is the subject in Track 2. The goal of this track is to digitalize information that is important for the chain, like import documents from custom services. This can lead to less or faster handlings, which decrease the time that cargo is waiting at a port for the right documents. This is because documents are digital and can be sent to actors in the chain while the vessel is already navigating to the ext destination.
Track 3 is to gain knowlegde in developments in waterway transport, like the use of the infrastructure, the waterway tansport chain and the future expectations of waterways and vessels. This includes vessel emmissions, cooperation in the waterway transport chain and innovations in the inland waterway transport, like solutions to comply with the norm of 30 minutes waiting time at locks. The track encourages companies and government to come up with ideas for stimulating the waterway transport. The IDVV program is open for ideas untill 2013.
A major problems in waterway navigation, the long waiting times at locks between the ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp, is acknowledged by the Dutch government. The locks Volkerak, Krammer, Hansweert and Kreekrak will become weak points in the connection between the two ports if nothing in waterway and lock management will change.
Optimization to reduce waiting times at locks
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1.4 Research question
Long waiting times at lock are one of the problems in inland waterway navigation. Expectations for waiting times in the next decade show waiting times that can increase up to several hours. That means vessels are waiting in a queue at a lock for several hours before the vessel can pass the lock. Since the length of the waiting time is not known on beforehand, the long waiting times can cause unexpected delays for shippers and their cargo. The unexpected delays play an important role in inland waterway transport, because inland waterway transport is often a part of a logistic chain. That means more parties and actors are involved in the transport process of cargo and these parties and actors must rely on agreements made between other parties in the chain. Unexpected delays can cause that agreements are not met, which is not good for reliability.
To minimize waiting times at locks, so that unexpected delays for vessels are avoid and that reliability for inland waterway transport increases, the following research question for this master thesis is made:
How can a system manage the interaction and communication between inland barges and infrastructure in such way, that the inland waterway transport becomes a faster and more reliable transport mode, that can compete with road and railway transport?
with the following sub questions:
‐ How can the dynamic system of communication and interaction between barges and infrastructure be modelled and simulated, so that the outcome will be as realistic as possible? ‐ How can the system work with or aside the existing communication systems in the inland
navigation?
‐ What is the effect on travel time and costs when the arrivals of vessels at locks are regulated? This report will provide information and results to find answers for these questions. To give structure to the information and results given in the next chapters, a certain approach is made. That approach is discussed in Section 1.5.
1.5 Research approach
To find answers to the research questions an approach must be made with steps to be taken. For this research we took the following steps in the approach:
- Investigate the current situation for cargo transport on the inland waterways.
- Collect parameters involved in the communication and interaction between inland vessels and waterway infrastructure.
- Model a waterway network which contains aspects from real situations.
- Construct the model in a computer program and simulate the waterway transport on that model with communication and interaction between the actors in the model.
- Write down all findings and draw conclusions from each step.
A structure of the research is given to make the report clear and legible. The structure given to this research and report is given in Figure 1.3.
Introduction
15 Figure 1.3 Structure of the research.
The structure in Figure 1.3 shows that first the waterway networks are investigated to find out how waterway cargo transport performs on the inland waterways. Then a suitable model must be found that can represent the waterway network in this research. The research will lead to three models all with their own advantages and disadvantages. The models will be compared with each other and with the current waterway networks, so that the best model can be chosen to simulate with in the research. After simulations results will be available as outcome. Finally, conclusions can be drawn from the results.
The waterway networks are discussed in Chapter 2. There we will discuss inland waterway systems for cargo transport, which includes the waterway network, vessels and cargo. In the next chapter, Chapter 3, we will discuss three models that can give an answer to our research question. One model will be chosen to simulate different scenarios of navigating vessels on the waterways. Calculations for waiting times by the chosen models are made in Chapter 4 and results of possibilities solutions to minimize the waiting times are given at the end of that chapter. In Chapter 5 conclusions are drawn for the results.
Optimization to reduce waiting times at locks
Inland waterway systems
17
2.
Inland waterway systems
For centuries surface water plays an important role for mankind. Cities were established strategically along major inland waterways or along the coast, not only to have water for consumption, sanitation and agricultural use, but also for the transportation of people and cargo. All over the world rivers and seas were used for accessibility to other cities and regions to facilitate travels and trades. World cities like Shanghai, Cairo, San Francisco and Rotterdam were established along an inland waterway and have access to the open sea. Even now, waterways are still important for transport of cargo and people.
Since this master thesis is about the navigating on inland waterways, this chapter will discuss the transport of cargo over inland waterways and several aspects which are involved in transportation on the inland waterways, like the cargo, the network and the inland vessels. In this chapter we will use examples and data of inland navigation in Europe and we will focus on the inland waterway connection between the ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp.
As an introduction to the waterway transport, in section 2.1 we will discuss types of cargo and forms of transport and their advantages and disadvantages. Section 2.2 is about the inland vessels that navigate on the European inland waterway networks. These waterway networks are discussed in section 2.3. To let the waterways be navigable, water levels and water flows are regulated by locks located in the waterways, which is discussed in section 2.4. In Section 2.5 of this chapter we will discuss a navigation problem on the inland waterway connection between the port of Rotterdam in The Netherlands and the port of Antwerp in Belgium, the largest and second largest ports in Europe [3]. Some concluding remarks are given in Section 2.6.
2.1 Transport
For transport of cargo and people there are four modes of transport. These modes are road, railway, airway and waterway transport. All transport modes provide connections between cities for transport of cargo and people. In this section we will discuss the cargo transport over inland waterways and compare waterway transport with the other three modes of transport. The transport discussed in this section is mainly hinterland transport, which is the transport to the area that a major seaport provides of cargo.
2.1.1 Cargo transport
Companies and consumers all over the world have demands of food and non-food products. These products are transported by one of the forms of transport, like road, railway, air, pipeline and waterway transport. The form of transport is dependent on the type of cargo that needs to be transported, because the type of cargo can bring certain restrictions to the form of transport. These restrictions can be:
- Type of cargo
- Dimensions of the cargo - Weight of the cargo
- Quantity of the transported cargo - Travel distance
- Costs
Types of cargo, like containers and bulk, have preferable transport modes. Container cargo contains all cargo in containers, usually with standard dimensions of twenty or forty feet long steel containers with a maximum weight per container. Bulk is often unpacked cargo in large quantities and comes in three different sorts, which are liquid, dry and break bulk. Liquid bulk includes liquid products like mineral oil products, chemical products and vegetable oils. Dry bulk includes ore, coal, concentrates,
Optimization to reduce waiting times at locks
18
industrial minerals and construction materials. Break bulk includes roll on roll off cargo and all other general cargo which does not belong to bulk or container cargo. Roll on roll of cargo is cargo that can roll, like cars, trucks and other rolling material. The travel distance can also determine the choice of transport. Intercontinental transport can require different transport equipment than hinterland or local transport. Costs are dependent of the previous properties and do differ per transport mode.
For the port of Rotterdam hinterland transport for the different types of cargo is made by four different forms, which are road, railway, inland waterway and pipeline transport. These four types of cargo are all transported by several transport modes. In 2010 the port of Rotterdam transported 430 million tons of cargo to the hinterland. The division of the transport mode per type of cargo is given in Figure 2.1.
Figure 2.1 Division of different cargo types and by which mode it is transported to the hinterland of Rotterdam, derived with data from [1] and [4].
As can be seen in Figure 2.1, containers are mainly transported by road and inland waterway transport, break bulk by road transport, liquid bulk by pipelines and dry bulk on inland waterways. The translation of the figures above to the total division of transport modes for the hinterland transport of the port of Rotterdam is given in Figure 2.2.
43% 17% 40%
container
truck train inland barge 90% 4% 6%break bulk
truck train inland barge 10% 3% 37% 50%liquid bulk
truck train inland barge pipe 11% 4% 85%dry bulk
truck train inland bargeInland waterway systems
19 Figure 2.2 Division of all the hinterland transport per transport mode for the port of Rotterdam,
with data from [1] and [4].
Figure 2.2 shows that a major part of the cargo transported to the hinterland is done by waterway transport. The division shown in Figure 2.2 is of course dependent of the geographical layout of the hinterland and the users of the cargo. Rotterdam is located in the North West of Europe and is directly connected to important waterways for that region, like the rivers Rhine and Meuse, which explains the large percentage of waterway transport from Rotterdam. The pipeline network in the hinterland is compared to the inland waterway network relatively small: 1500 km [5]. Many chemical factories and oil refineries are located around the port and these chemical and oil companies receive their liquid materials directly from the port via pipelines, which explains the large part of cargo that is transported by pipelines.
As written before, properties of the cargo, like dimensions, weight and distance, have an influence on the choice for a certain transport mode. But not only the cargo determines the choice of transport, the transport mode itself also have properties, like costs, travel speed and reliability. In the next section we will discuss properties of the different transport modes.
2.1.2 Transport modes
Transport modes are ways to transport cargo or people from A to B. The modes have differences in travel speed, travel time, costs and reliability [6]. For hinterland transport the four most used transport modes are road, railway, waterway and pipeline transport. Although, over a quarter of the transhipped cargo in the port of Rotterdam is transported by pipelines, in this report pipeline transport is not considered as a hinterland transport mode. That is because the pipeline network is small and is not really a network, like roads with many junctions and crossings where the route can be changed easily. And therefore it is not a competitive mode compared to railway, road and inland waterway transport. In this section we will compare the hinterland transport modes road, railway and inland waterway.
Each transport mode has its own advantages and disadvantages, which can be on influence of a certain choice for cargo transport. In Table 2.1. the advantages and disadvantages of the three main hinterland transport modes are given.
26,8% 6,0% 22,7% 44,5% pipeline rail road waterway
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Transport mode Advantages Disadvantages
Road ‐ Extremely wide infrastructure ‐ Reliable in time
‐ No extra transhipments needed
‐ Fast
‐ Can always reach end of transport chain
‐ Congestion on roads ‐ Most expensive form of
hinterland transport
Railway ‐ Wide infrastructure ‐ Competitive for road
transportation over longer distances
‐ Cannot always reach end of transport chain
‐ Reliability in time
‐ Not the fastest transport mode Waterway ‐ Relatively cheap
‐ Infrastructure in large part of Europe
‐ Slow
‐ Unreliable in time
‐ Cannot always reach end of transport chain
Table 2.1 Advantages and disadvantages of the different hinterland transport modes [7]. Table 2.1 shows what factors can be advantages and disadvantages for each transport mode. The factors are:
‐ Size of the infrastructural network ‐ Destination of cargo
‐ Amount of traffic on the network ‐ Reliability in time
‐ Travel speed ‐ Costs
The size and width of the infrastructural network is important for a transport mode. The size of the network is on influence if the transport equipment, like truck, train or inland vessel, is able to arrive at the destination. The road network covers almost all inhabited parts in the world, while not all cities are connected to railways or waterways. The width of the network determines the capacity of the network. Highways have more traffic lanes and provide more space and capacity for road transport. The capacity of the network together with the amount of traffic on that network will lead to possible congestions. Congestion can occur for all hinterland transport modes, like road congestion during rush hour, waiting trains before a railway station where all platforms are occupied or waiting vessels in front of a lock in the waterway. Congestion cause time loss and will that will lead to lower average travel speed and less reliability of the transport mode.
The travel speed of each transport is different. The range of velocities of the three modes is given in Table 2.2.
Transport mode Velocity range
Road 60 – 70 [km/h]
Rail 25 – 40 [km/h]
Waterway 15 – 20 [km/h]
Table 2.2 Average speed of the three transport modes [8].
Where trucks and cargo trains travel on average 700 km per day, inland vessels travel between 170 and 250 km per day, depending if the vessel navigates upstream or downstream. Since travel distance per day for trucks and cargo trains are approximately the same, the travel costs for long distance transport is lower for cargo trains than for road transport [9]. The disadvantage for railway transport is that the network is smaller than the road network and can lead to multimodal transport: the smaller railway network can lead to transhipments of the cargo from train to truck, so that the cargo is
Inland waterway systems
21 transported by truck to reach its final destination. Transhipments, which are the actions to move cargo from one transport mode to another, costs money and time. Therefore, dependent of travel distance, multimodal transport is not always the best option.
While speed, time and costs are measurable, reliability is not, but is nevertheless very important. The reliability is the ability to perform and maintain the agreements made between all actors involved within A and B during normal circumstances, as well as during unexpected circumstances. The actors involved during transport can be the seller, transporter and buyer of the cargo. Transport can also be multimodal, which means there are multiple transport modes involved to transport the cargo from the start to the final destination. All transport modes form a chain and is called the transport chain. Each transport mode in the transport chain and has its own transporters and transport companies, so when transport becomes multimodal, more parties and actors are involved in the process [9]. Because all transport modes have disadvantages, multimodal transport becomes sometimes necessary due to those disadvantages. Rotterdam is one of the largest cities in The Netherlands and during the morning and evening rush hours congestion is caused by many commuters that travel to their work. Together with the hinterland road transport from and to the largest port of Europe and a limited capacity of the road network congestions become a major problem for the accessibility for the port. Since Rotterdam is connected to a major waterway network in the hinterland, many cargo that usually is transported by trucks, is now transported by inland vessels to a transport hub nearby Rotterdam [9]. At the transport hub the cargo is transhipped to trucks and continue their journey. Transport hubs are strategically located terrains in the hinterland where cargo can be transhipped from one mode to another. The hub has good accessibility for the transport modes that tranship their cargo at the hub, so that the transport modes suffer less from congestions than in the situation without hub. Possible transport hubs are given in Figure 2.3. Here, transport hubs for road an railway (A), railway and waterway transport (B) and Waterway and road transport (C) are drawn in the figure.
Figure 2.3 Intermodal network with hubs (A, B and C). The transport from 1-4 to A and 5-8 to C is made by road, A to B by rail and between B and C by water transport. Hubs A and C collect and
distribute cargo from the locations 1-8. With information from [11].
Because more parties and actors are involved in multimodal transport, they must rely on each other’s transport abilities, so the reliability of each form of transport in the chain must be as high as possible. Reliability in time, like arrival times of vessel, trucks and trains and their cargo must be correspond with the arrival times in the arrival schedules of all transport modes to maintain reliability. For example, when cargo arrives later than expected, the next step in the chain starts with a delay, which sometimes cannot be caught up by during the transport in this mode. So delays in one part of the chain can cause delays in another part. Figure 2.4 shows the properties of the different transport modes, including the reliability of all forms of transport.
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Figure 2.4 Transport modes and their properties. With information from [6].
The figure shows the service costs, travel speed, reliability of all other transport modes. The service costs are the costs per ton-kilometre, which is the price to transport one ton of cargo over one kilometre. The figure also shows some properties of the cargo that is transported by each mode. Cargo that is light weight, has a high value (per ton) or cargo that needs to be transported is a short time is often transported by air. Air cargo can be goods like mail and flowers. More heavier cargo with a low value (per ton) or cargo that cannot expire, like food, are often transported by waterway transport. Waterway cargo are therefore often containers and bulk cargo, like coal, oil and grains. In this master thesis we will discuss inland waterway transport. As can be seen in Figure 4, waterway transport is a slow, less reliable transport mode and has lower service costs than all other transport mode. On the other hand, waterway transport has the ability to grow, because the waterway network has capacity left for more traffic, where road traffic is almost at its maximum capacity. To increase the competitive position of waterway transport we will look to the possibilities to increase the reliability. But first we will look at the expectations of how the hinterland transport will develop in the future.
2.1.3 Future inland transport
Expectation of inland transport in the future are based on growth in demand of cargo and on the transport networks of the different transport modes. Worldwide the population is growing and therefore the worldwide demand in food and other products is increasing. To transport those product from sea port to the hinterland the different transport modes are used to deliver the products at the consumers.
For the European inland transport the expectations are that the demand in cargo and transport will grow in the next decades. The port of Rotterdam, the largest port of Europe, expects that the total transport in cargo will grow, no matter how economy, oil prices, world trade or environmental policies will develop [1]. The port of Rotterdam expects growth between 10% and 75% for the year 2030, which has not only to do with the increase of demand, but also with the increased capacity of the port of Rotterdam with the build of Maasvlakte 2. The growth of the port means hinterland transport will grow as well. The way the hinterland transport will grow is dependent of what types of cargo need to be transported.
As written in the section 2.1.2 congestion plays an important role for road transport, especially during peak hours in road traffic. By [11], road transport is the most used form of inland transport. Increasing road traffic will result in more and longer traffic jams, which will lead in its way that road
Inland waterway systems
23 transport will no longer be as quick and reliable as it is now. So, with road transport as leader of all the transport modes, alternative modes must take over a part of the road transport where possible. This can lead to more intermodal transport and transhipment hubs in the future.
The port of Rotterdam expects all transport modes to grow, but sees a modal shift from road transport to railway and waterway transport, due to capacity of the road network around Rotterdam and its hinterland. Also, the port of Rotterdam expects that container transport will increase up to 42% by stimulating the use of intermodal transport [1]. To make transhipment easier, container transport will increase due to the standard dimensions of the containers. Container dimensions are given in TEU, which stands for Twenty feet Equivalent Unit, a twenty feet (approx. 6.1 meters) long container unit. Figure 2.6 shows the expected changes in hinterland transport for the port of Rotterdam.
Figure 2.5 Container volume per transport mode for hinterland connections from the port of Rotterdam in percentage (left) and in million TEU (right) [1].
Figure 2.5 shows expectations where the percentage of container transport for road transport will decrease and for railway and waterway will increase. The total container transport will increase from 5 million to 17 million TEU in 25 years, which is more than three times the current amount. The largest increase in container transport is for waterway transport, which is grow from 1.8 million to 7.5 million TUE for 2035, over four times the current amount of containers.
So expectations tell us that that waterway transport will increase with large quantities the next decades. In the next section we will discuss what kind of vessels are used for the waterway transport in Europe and how they react on the future expectations.
2.2 Inland vessels
There are many types of inland vessels navigating on the European waterways. A European classification system is used to categorize all types, so that all vessels belong to a category according to their dimensions. Dimensions of vessels are important for planning and schedules in ports to assign specific quay walls to specific vessels. Because quay walls have certain length and water depths it is important a vessel is no longer or has a draft larger than the local water depth. Like quay walls, locks in the waterways have their specific inner dimensions. To use the maximum capacity of a lock, the dimensions of a vessel can determine if the vessel can enter the lock chamber or not. To make appointments and arriving schedules in the transport industry it is not only important to know the vessel’s dimensions, but also the velocities of the specific vessels. Vessel dimensions are shown in Figure 2.6. In this section we will discuss the dimensions and velocities of the vessels that navigate on the waterways.
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Figure 2.6 Vessel dimensions and water depth.
2.2.1 CEMT classes
Due to the many types of vessels on the inland waterways a classification system was made for all vessels. This European classification system was established in 1954 at the ‘Conférence Européenne des Ministres de Transports’ and is called the CEMT classification. Today, all vessels are categorized in one of the classes from class 0 for recreational vessels and vessels smaller than 38,50 meters, upwards to class VII for vessels till 285 meters long.
The CEMT classification consists of two different forms of inland vessels, which are standard or single barges with an on board motor and combinations of a motor powered vessel with one or multiple barges. The vessel classes for these two forms are given in the Table 2.3 and 2.4 according the CEMT classifications.
CEMT
Class Type (name) Standard vessels with classification Length Width Draft Loading
capacity Height
[m] [m] [m] [ton] [m]
0 Small vessels and recreation
varying varying varying < 250 varying
I Spits 38,50 5,05 1,80-2,20 250 - 400 4 II Kempenaar 50 - 55 6,60 2,50 400 - 650 4,00 - 5,00 III Dortmund - Eemskanaalschip 67 - 80 8,20 2,50 650 - 1000 4,00 - 5,00 IV Rijn - Hernekanaalschip 80 - 85 9,50 2,50 1000 - 1500 5,25 or 7,00 Va Groot Rijnschip 95 - 110 11,40 2,50 - 2,80 1500 - 3000 5,25 or 7,00 or 9,10 Vb Groot Rijnschip 135 11,40 3,00 - 3,50 4000 - 5250 VIa VIb 140 15,00 3,90 7,00 or 9,10 VIc VII
Inland waterway systems
25 CEMT
Class Combination Length Witdh Push barge combinations Draft Loading
capacity height [m] [m] [m] [ton] [m] 0 I II III IV 85 9,50 2,50 - 2,80 1250 - 1450 5,25 or 7,00 Va 95 - 110 11,40 2,50 - 4,50 1600 - 3000 5,25 or 7,00 or 9,10 Vb 2 barges 172 - 185 11,40 2,50 4,50 - 3200 - 6000 VIa 2 barges 95 - 110 22,80 2,50 - 4,50 3200 - 6000 7,00 or 9,10 VIb 4 or 6 barges 185 - 195 22,80 2,50 4,50 - 6400 - 12000 7,00 or 9,10 VIc 4 or 6 barges 270 - 280 22,80 2,50 - 4,50 9600 - 18000 9,10 193 - 200 33,00 - 34,20 VII 6 barges 285 33,00 195 34,20 2,50-4,50 14500 - 27000 9,10 Table 2.4 CEMT classification for motor powered push barge combinations [12].
Not all classes navigate on all waterways, due to the dimensions of the waterways itself. For instance, the CEMT classes that navigate between the ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp via the inland waterways and pass the Volkerak lock are given in Table 2.5.
CEMT class Share [%] 0 0.3 I 7.7 II 8.5 III 29.5 IV 20.5 Va 24.5 VIa 8.5 VIb / VIc 0.5
Table 2.5 Share of CEMT classes passing Volkerak locks [14].
Table 2.5 also provides the share of each class that passes the lock. Almost 75% of all passages are made by three CEMT classes, which are III, VI and Va. By [15] only commercial vessels with CEMT classes I, II, IV, V and VI are present on the Belgium waterways. That only these classes are present on the Belgium waterways mainly to do with the dimensions of the vessels and the Belgium waterways. Why class III is not navigating on the Belgium waterways is in contrast with the large number of class III vessels on the Rotterdam – Antwerp connection in Table 4. Another explanation could be that some CEMT classes are combined. A commonly used vessel type on the Rotterdam – Antwerp route, which is ‘Groot Rijnschip’, is by [14] taken as one type while the CEMT classification
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divides the ‘Groot Rijnschip’ in classes Va and Vb due to the fact that the ‘Groot Rijnschip’ exists in two different length, according to [13].
Future expectations of the fleet are that the number of vessels will increase by 10% in the year 2020. Also, the dimensions of the vessels will increase due to increasing maximum load capacities of inland vessels [16]. The average load capacity of vessel will increase with 16% between 2010 and 2020, which is achieved by shifts in the shares of the CEMT classes of vessels. The share of vessels in CEMT classes IV and higher will increase, while vessels in classes III and lower will decrease.
2.2.2 Vessel velocities
Besides dimensions, travel velocities of inland vessels are used for planning in the transport industry. When arrival times in schedules are achieved, the transport industry becomes more reliable. The velocities for road and railway transport are limited by maximum velocities determined by the road or railway management. These managements decide on which part a certain vehicle may travel with. Trucks and train are capable to reach those maximum velocities on most parts of their journey. The velocity of vessels, however, is only for minor parts of the waterways restricted by waterway management services, like in ports or parts with many traffic on the waterway. On other parts, like canal and rivers, no velocity restrictions are applicable. When there are no restriction for the velocities, the travel velocity is dependent of the power supply of the vessel. The power supply of the vessel determines the velocity of the vessel in certain circumstances, like if the vessel is fully loaded with cargo and if the vessel navigates downstream or upstream the waterway.
By [15] the average power supply of the vessels’ engine is dependent of the CEMT classes. For three commonly used inland vessels classes in Belgium the engine power in [kW]. Those vessel classes are I, II and IV. The average engine power, loading capacity and velocity of the vessels on the Rotterdam – Antwerp connection for the three classes are given in Table 2.6. The velocities are averages for down and upstream navigation.
Table 2.6 Average loading capacity, engine power and velocity for vessel classes I, II and IV. The average velocities are for loaded and unloaded vessels [15].
As Table 2.6 shows, the loading capacity and the engine power of the classes have large differences, while the average velocities for both loaded and unloaded vessels are quite similar. By [17] the travel velocities for inland vessels are given for more classes. The velocities for loaded and unloaded vessels are given in Table 2.7.
CEMT class Vessel type Loading
capacity [ton] power [kW] Engine loaded unloadedVelocity [km/h]
I Spits 360 215 12 14
II Kempenaar 550 290 13 16
IV Rijn-Herne
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27
CEMT class Vessel type Velocity [km/h]
loaded unloaded 0 Small vessel or recreational 13 15
I Spits 13 15
II Kempenaar 13 15
III Dortmund - Eemskanaalschip 14.5 17.5
IV Rijn-Hernekanaalschip 15 20
Va Groot Rijnschip 15 20
Vb 2 barge combination 12 15
VI 4 barge combination 12 15
Table 2.7 Average velocities for different vessel classes [17].
From Tables 2.7 we can conclude that the differences in velocities is minimal for all classes in the CEMT classification for both loaded and unloaded situations. That means that the loading capacity and the vessels’ power output of the engine are matched in such way, that the vessel can reach a velocity that is in the range of 12 – 15 [km/h] when loaded and in the range of 15 – 20 [km/h] for unloaded situations.
On the connection between Rotterdam and Antwerp the velocity of which vessels navigate with is often the maximum [18]. Since there are no limitations for velocity on the waterways between Rotterdam and Antwerp, we assume the velocities in Table 2.7 are approximately the maximum velocities of the vessels in each CEMT class.
2.2.3 Fuel consumption and fuel costs
Corresponded to the velocity of an inland vessel is the fuel consumption. The fuel consumption is the amount of fuel the vessel uses per time unit or per navigated distance. By [15] the fuel consumption is dependent of the engine power and is notated in [gram/kWh], so the amount of fuel consumed in grams per kilowatt during one hour. A certain velocity of the vessel needs a certain level of performance output of the engine maintain that velocity. The performance output is an percentage of the maximum power output of the engine. The average fuel consumption for the classes I, II and IV is given in Table 2.8.
CEMT class Vessel type Fuel consumption
[gr/kWh]
I Spits 218
II Kempenaar 215
IV Rijn-Herne kanaalschip 210
Table 2.8 Average fuel consumption for the CEMT classes I, II and IV [15].
The fuel consumption from Table 2.8 corresponds with the velocities and engine output from Table 2.6. The costs of a journey is partly dependent of the consumed fuel and the fuel price.
The fuel consumption for different velocities for the same vessels can be calculated in two different ways. One way is to use the level of performance demand of the engine [15], the other way is to use the ratio between the travel velocity and a velocity of which the fuel consumption is known [19]. When the fuel consumption is multiplied by the fuel price, we can calculated the fuel costs for a vessel at a certain velocity.
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In the calculations with the method with the power demand of the engine or level of performance [15], the following units are used:
‐ travel velocity
V
[km/h]‐ distance
D
[km]‐ power rate
r
[% of maximum engine output]‐ maximum power of vessel
P
max [kW]‐ fuel consumption
F
c [gr/kWh]‐ fuel priceFp [€/gr]
The calculation of the fuel consumption and costs is done in 4 steps, given below.
1. Fuel consumption in grams per time unit for a distance with a constant velocity can be calculated with:
P
maxrF
c.2. When the formula above is multiplied by the travel time, the fuel consumption in grams on a certain trajectory can be calculated. The travel time can be calculated with distance
D
and navigation velocityV
and is given with the formula:max c
D
P rF
V
.3. The fuel consumption can be converted to fuel costs when we multiply the fuel price Fpin Euros per gram, which can be written with:
max c p
D
P rF
F
V
.4. The calculation above provides the fuel costs for inland navigation with a constant velocity. When the velocity is adjusted, the fuel costs will change, according to the formula. So when the costs are calculated with multiple velocities involved, the fuel costs are the sum of the given formula for different travel times and power ratios. This is given with the formula:
p max c
D
F P
F
r
V
.The second way to calculate the fuel costs is to use ratio in velocities of the vessel. In [19] the fuel consumption at a certain velocity is known, a so called normal service velocity. To calculate the fuel costs the following data is used:
‐ normal service velocity
V
ˆ
[km/h]‐ travel velocity
V
[km/h]‐ distance
D
[km]‐ fuel consumption
F
c [gr/h]‐ fuel priceFp [€/gr]
Inland waterway systems
29 1. The ratio in the third power between the normal service velocity
V
and the travel velocity ismultiplied by the fuel consumption that corresponds with the normal service velocity. That will give the fuel consumption during navigation with the travel velocity:
3 c
ˆ
V
F
V
.2. The fuel that is consumed over a distance
D
is the fuel consumption over the time that the vessel navigates with the travel velocity over distanceD
:3 c
ˆ
ˆ
D V
F
V
V
.3. The fuel consumption above can be expressed in terms of costs when the fuel price Fp is added: 2 c p 3
ˆ
V DF F
V
.4. Like the calculations of [15], the fuel costs are for navigation with constant velocity. To calculate the fuel costs for fluctuating velocities, the formula is changed to sum up the costs for different travel velocities:
c p 2 3
ˆ
F F
V D
V
.In essence the two calculation methods are the same. The difference is in the used ratio, but indicate the same: the higher the velocity, the higher the power output.
From [15], we get an average fuel consumption of 80 L/h for the vessels in CEMT classes I, II and IV when navigating with an average velocity of 14 km/h. Recent fuel prices for inland vessels is approximately €0.80 per Litre [20]. The density of fuel is 900 g/L.
The calculations in this section of fuel consumption of inland vessels corresponds with research of fuel consumption of inland vessels by [21] and [22].
2.2.4 Operating costs
Besides fuel costs, a vessel has operating costs. By [23], the total costs to run a vessel is the sum of the fuel costs and the operating costs,
tot f op
C C C
where
C
totare the total costs,C
f the fuel costs andCopthe operating costs.The operating costs can be split up in labour costs and other costs, where other costs are fixed costs like insurance, interest and maintenance. The percentage of the different costs are given in Table 2.9.
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Table 2.9 Division of fuel and operating costs for inland vessel [23].
The percentages in the table are annual averages for inland vessels. When the fuel costs are calculated with the formulas from section 2.2.3 the variable and fixed operating costs can be calculated afterwards. It also means fuel costs are 1/5 of the total costs.
With an average fuel consumption of 80 L/h at €0.80 per Litre, we get an average operating price of approximately €260 per hour.
Now that several properties, like vessel dimensions, load capacity, fuel consumption and fuel and operating costs have been discussed, we will discuss the inland waterways on which the vessels navigate.
Type of costs Percentage of total
Fuel 20% Operating (variable) 40%
Inland waterway systems
31
2.3 Waterway networks
This master thesis is about optimizing cargo transport on inland waterways. The waterway networks discussed in this master thesis are waterways where cargo transport takes place for commercial purposes.
2.3.1 The waterways
Waterways in the forms of rivers and canals can be found all over the world. Not all of these waterways are suitable for large cargo vessels, due to the dimensions of both waterway and vessel. In Europe, for instance, there is 30 thousand kilometres of navigable waterway, of which 10 thousand kilometres is the core network [24]. This core network in European is mainly situated in the North and Western part of the mainland of Europe, but the river Danube connects the North Western part of the network with the network in Eastern Europe, as can be seen in Figure 2.7.
Figure 2.7 Europe and the main waterway network [25].
As can be seen in Figure 2.7, the North Western part of Europe has many inland waterways which are connected with the North Sea. The main inland waterway in Europe it is the 1224 km long river Rhine. The paper [26] says the Rhine is the most important waterway in Europe. About 70% of all inland waterway transport in the former EU-15 is transported over the Rhine. The EU-15 is the name of the European Union from 1995 till 2004 and consist of 15 European countries. These countries are The Netherlands, Germany, France, Austria, Belgium, Luxemburg, Spain, Portugal, Italy, United Kingdom, Ireland, Greece, Sweden, Finland and Denmark, while the Rhine flows only through the first five of them. Whereas the Rhine is the river from the centre of Europe to the North sea in the West, the river Danube, with a length over 2800 km, is the connection from the centre of Europe to the Black sea in the east. Since 1992, the two rivers are connected by the Rhine-Danube-canal, which increased the size of the accessible hinterland for European ports, like Rotterdam.
Due to the connections with inland waterways and open sea, many ports are located in this port of Europe. In the North Western port of Europe eleven commercial sea ports are located, which have a
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significant share in the cargo transport to the European hinterland. The ports are located between Hamburg in Germany and Le Havre in France. For that reason the area where these ports are located is called the HLH – range, which stands for Hamburg Le Havre – range. Figure 8 shows the market shares of the ports in the HLH – range. The market share is the part of hinterland cargo transport where the specific ports are responsible for in Europe.
Figure 2.8 Market shares (%) for each port in the Hamburg Le Havre range, with data from [3]. Figure 2.8 shows that the ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp are the largest and second largest ports of Europe and have together a market share of over 50%.
To transport cargo in a reliable way from the ports to the hinterland and vice versa, communication is crucial for planning and schedules for vessels and ports, both inland and sea ports.
2.3.2 Communication in inland waterways
Navigation on sea or inland waterways has become easier since the introduction of electronic devices, such as radar, GPS, digital waterway maps and communication systems. Radar and GPS are used to determine the exact location of the vessel, which than can be plotted on the electronic waterway map. With these tools the vessel can navigate safely, reducing the changes for collisions with land or other vessels. Communication systems, like the Automatic Identification System (AIS), provides the ability to communicate with other vessels and with organisations on shore, like waterway management services, locks and bridge managements. Also, the Automatic Identification System transmits information of the vessel itself. The information of a vessel that is transmitted by the AIS includes the following: Hamburg 11% Bremen 6% Wilhelmshafen 2% Amsterdam 8% Rotterdam 38% Zeeland seaports 3% Antwerp 16% Gent 2% Zeebrugge 4% Duinkerken 4% Le Havre 6%
Inland waterway systems 33 ‐ Vessels identity ‐ Velocity ‐ Position ‐ Course ‐ Destination
‐ Data for safe navigation and maritime security
This information becomes available for other nearby vessels, which results in that other vessels can predict your path on the waterway with the help of velocity and direction.
By [27] the Automatic Identification System is an international standard for seagoing and inland vessels for vessel-to-vessel, vessel-to-shore and shore-to-vessel communication. The AIS is mandatory for commercial vessels over 300 tons, but in the near future the AIS becomes mandatory for all vessel with a length of 20 meters or more, including recreational vessels. The report rates, the time between updates of information that is transmitted from a vessel with the Automatic Identification System, is dependent of the velocity of the vessel. In Table 2.10 the report rate for the AIS to the Vessel Traffic Service is given [28]. For the vessels in the CEMT classes, the velocity does not exceed 20 km/h, which is approximately 11 knots.
Ship dynamic conditions Reporting interval
Ship status “at anchor’ and speed <3 knots 3 minutes Ship status “at anchor’ and speed >3 knots 10 seconds
0-14 knots 10 seconds
0-14 knots and change course 3 1/3 seconds
14-23 knots 6 seconds
14-23 knots and change course 2 seconds
>23 knots 2 seconds
>23 knots and change course 2 seconds
Table 2.10 AIS report rate, 1 knot = 1.852 km/h [28].
The result of the AIS is that information of vessels become available not only for the waterway industry, but for everyone who is interested. Internet sites publish the information of all AIS information. Figure 2.9 shows all vessels with an AIS system on board that navigates in or around the port of Rotterdam. The figure shows that both sea going as well as inland vessels use the Automatic Identification System.
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Figure 2.9 The Area around the port of Rotterdam with all vessels with an AIS system on board [29].
Navigation systems are only useful when the waterways are navigable. The navigability of the waterways are dependent of the water levels in the waterways. In the next section we will discuss the water levels in the waterways and what problems can occur when water levels reach extreme high or low levels.
2.3.3 Water levels
Fluctuations in water levels cause problems for the waterway transport. Vessels can ground when low water levels occur or cannot pass bridges due to very high water levels. When shippers know they will navigate on water with low water levels, they adjust their draft (and with that the keel clearance) by decreasing the amount of cargo on board compared to the maximum load capacity, which results in higher transport costs per transported ton of cargo. This is shown in Figure 2.10. There are four different scenarios for a vessel with different water levels and amount of cargo. Under circumstances where clearance between bridge and vessel are safe and when there is enough keel clearance (A) to prevent grounding, shippers can navigate safely with the maximum amount of cargo in the hull of the vessel. When the water level drops and the amount of cargo on the vessel remains the same, the draft remains the same and the risk for grounding increases (B). This is because the keel clearance becomes smaller. To prevent grounding, the amount of cargo on board of the vessel must decrease, to let the keel clearance increase (C). When the water level is too high to maintain a safe distance between the bridge and the highest point of the vessel with a maximum amount of cargo on board (D), vessels cannot navigate on that part of the river, causing congestion before the impassable part of the river and delays in cargo deliveries.
