>> BoxTradeIntelligence has released an analysis of Asia-Europe Westbound trade lane.  It is available here .

>> MDS Transmodal's presentation to Intermodal Europe 2011 conference in Hamburg is available for download.

>> MDS Transmodal's presentation on Port Infrastructure Development to RenewableUK 2011 conference in London is available for download. 

>> The 2011 competition for funding for international sustainable distribution services from the European Commission's Marco Polo Programme has now started and the deadline for submissions is 16 January 2012.   For a description of the main changes to the Programme this year and how MDS Transmodal can help you to develop a successful application, please see the attached White Paper

>> Longer lorries.  On the 30th March, the Department for Transport (DfT) published a consultation on a proposal to allow a 2.05m increase in the length of semi-trailers and a maximum overall length for articulated HGVs of 18.75m.  Read more

>> The UK Government's Comprehensive Spending Review has been very significant for the transport market.  MDS Transmodal produced freight traffic forecasts for the Freight Transport Association's submission.

For FTA's submission click here.

The current and forecast road and rail traffic maps are our work.

>> South America Trade Briefing The third in the series of trade briefings from MDS Transmodal - the South America Trade Briefing -presents analysis of containerised trade data to 4Q 2009 and forecasts for the next two years using the MDS Transmodal World Cargo Database.

>> North America Trade Briefing The second in the series of trade briefings from MDS Transmodal - the North America Trade Briefing -presents analysis of containerised trade data to 4Q 2009 and forecasts for the next two years using the MDS Transmodal World Cargo Database.

>> China Trade Briefing 2010  The latest China Trade Briefing report from MDS Transmodal highlights key trends in China's containerised import and export trades with near term quarterly predictions for 2010 and 2011.  Although the last 18 months have seen the container markets fall in spectacular fashion, still the words "double-digit growth" have not left the shipping industry's parlance as far as China is concerned.  The China Trade Briefing report shows why.  As well as looking at broad trends in imports and exports the report provides specific details on China's container trades with trading partners and particular commodity groups, drilling down to SITC 5 digit level in some cases.

>> Consolidated UK International Passenger database, available for 2010, describing passenger volumes by mode, route, origin/destination, journey purpose, length of stay and purpose, compatible with IPS, ferry operator and CAA sources. More...Italiano...

 

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Transport Policy

Changes in transport policy can have a major impact on manufacturing, retailing and logistics companies as the public sector responds to issues such as traffic congestion and environmental pollution. The public sector has a major influence on transport patterns through the planning system, via its investment in the road and rail networks and through its regulatory functions and the taxation system.

An understanding of transport policy trends is essential for strategic planning for business:

  • How is the Government trying to address the issue of growing congestion on the road network and what implications would any policy instruments have on the cost of distribution for business?
  • Does the Government's policy of promoting the use of rail or water transport suggest that your company should consider using rail for some of its distribution needs? What sources of funding are available from the public sector to help you switch traffic away from road to more sustainable modes of transport?
  • Developers and promoters of distribution sites and port facilities need to have a thorough understanding of transport policy at a national, regional and local level so they can develop a good case for their developments at planning enquiries.
  • Regional and local authorities need to understand how the implementation of their policies fits into a national and even European policy context to maximise their effectiveness and at the micro level, how individual companies will respond to policy changes.

 

We believe that one of our key strengths as a consultancy is our in-depth knowledge and understanding of transport policy, particularly in the freight sector. Our increasing involvement in assisting public sector clients to develop policy and our on-going monitoring of public policy developments, gives us an unrivalled insight into future freight transport policy trends and allows us to analyse the potential impact of these policies on our clients' businesses.

The European policy context

The European Union plays an important role in developing an overall transport policy framework, which Member States are increasingly following. The European Union should therefore be seen mainly as providing a policy framework which can be followed by Member States, rather than having a major direct impact on transport policy in a Member State. However, European Union legislation often has a direct impact on businesses and the European Union can also provide funding for transport infrastructure development and sustainable transport services.

The United Kingdom policy context

The UK Government provides the policy and planning framework within which regional and local planning policies are developed. It also provides the majority of the financial resources available for the national road and rail networks. The Government has set out its broad philosophy as well as the associated policy instruments in a number of policy framework documents published between 1998 and 2004. These documents have been supplemented by more detailed policy documents produced for rail freight and maritime transport. Central Government provides a number of freight grants that are essentially designed to promote the transfer of freight traffic to more sustainable modes.