Marine vessels as substitutes for heavy-duty trucks in Great Lakes freight transportation.
This paper applies a geospatial network optimization model to explore environmental, economic, and time-of-delivery tradeoffs associated with the application of marine vessels as substitutes for heavy-duty trucks operating in the Great Lakes region. The geospatial model integrates U.S. and Canadian highway, rail, and waterway networks to create an intermodal network and characterizes this network using temporal, economic, and environmental attributes (including emissions of carbon dioxide, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur oxides, volatile organic compounds, and nitrogen oxides). A case study evaluates tradeoffs associated with containerized traffic flow in the Great Lakes region, demonstrating how choice of freight mode affects the environmental performance of movement of goods. These results suggest opportunities to improve the environmental performance of freight transport through infrastructure development, technology implementation, and economic incentives.
Comer
Bryan
B
Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY 14623, USA.
Corbett
James J
JJ
Hawker
J Scott
JS
Korfmacher
Karl
K
Lee
Earl E
EE
Prokop
Chris
C
Winebrake
James J
JJ
D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000032:analysis; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000737:chemistry; D003132:Commerce / Q000191:economics; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D004787:Environmental Pollution / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006114:Great Lakes Region; D018986:Motor Vehicles; D012767:Ships; D013997:Time Factors; D001335:Vehicle Emissions / Q000032:analysis
D000393:Air Pollutants; D001335:Vehicle Emissions; D002245:Carbon Dioxide