ANALYSIS OF THE INCREMENTAL COST AND TRADE-OFFS BETWEEN ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND PHYSICAL DISTRIBUTION EFFECTIVENESS IN INTERCITY FREIGHT MARKETS

The report describes a study of the effects of changes in national transportation policy on the traffic allocation and the energy consumption of various modes of intercity freight transportation. Models have been developed to predict the level of service associated with the transport alternatives available to a firm, to predict the total logistics cost of each of these alternatives, and to forecast the demand for various modal services at the disaggregate level. Using these models and methods, it is possible to make detailed forecasts of commodity flows under alternative policy options. Policy options selected for analysis were investigated with a computerized model system which simulated freight flows between four pairs of major metropolitan areas. Before the model could be applied, each policy was analyzed with regard to its effect on the key level of service determinants. The model system was then used to predict the impact of the level of service changes on the shipping patterns of a sample of individual firms. These results have been summed and expanded to produce aggregate forecasts of modal shares and energy consumption.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • The computer program developed for this project is described in User Manual for Freight Transportation Analysis software, RRIS 20 174351; Bulletin 7802. Prepared for the Federal Energy Administration, Office of Transportation Policy Research.
• Corporate Authors:

  Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  Center for Transportation Studies, Room 1121
  Cambridge, MA  United States  02139

  Department of Energy

  1000 Independence Avenue, SW
  Washington, DC  United States  20585
• Authors:
  • Roberts, P O
  • Terziev, M N
  • KNEAFSEY, J T
  • Wilson, L B
  • SAMUELSON, R D
  • CHIANG, Y S
  • Deephouse, C V
• Publication Date: 1976-11

Media Info

• Pagination: 186 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Alternatives analysis; Analysis; Commodity flow; Conservation; Costs; Demand; Economics; Energy; Energy conservation; Energy consumption; Forecasting; Freight traffic; Freight transportation; Fuel consumption; Intercity transportation; Level of service; Logistics; Mathematical models; Mode S; Physical distribution; Policy; Traffic managers; Transportation; Transportation policy
• Uncontrolled Terms: Cost analysis; Models; Shippers
• Geographic Terms: United States
• Old TRIS Terms: Cargo transportation; Commodity flow patterns; Energy intensiveness; Government policies; National transportation policies
• Subject Areas: Economics; Energy; Environment; Policy; Society; Transportation (General);

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00168807
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Technical Information Service
• Report/Paper Numbers: FEA/D-77/375, CTS-76-14
• Contract Numbers: FEA-CO-04-50154-00, CO-04-50154-00
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Dec 27 1978 12:00AM