scholarly journals South Africa’s freight rail reform: A demand-driven perspective

2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan H. Havenga ◽  
Zane P. Simpson ◽  
Anneke De Bod
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Market Segmentation ◽  
Road Transport ◽  
Freight Transport ◽  
Strategy Development ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Logistics Network ◽  
Reform Agenda ◽  
Standard Management

During the 20th century, freight transport in South Africa was employed to attain politicoeconomic ideals, resulting in the overprotection of rail and overregulation of road transport. Increasing industry pressure, combined with the international deregulation trend, led to deregulation in 1988. Myopia resulted in a rail investment hiatus and exponential growth in high-value, long-distance road transport, causing excessive logistics and externality costs for the country. The aim of this study was to propose a freight rail reform agenda based on, (1) lessons from past freight transport policy efforts and (2) the results of freight transport market segmentation driven by models developed over the past two decades. For the study, freight flows were modelled by disaggregating the national input–output model into 372 origin–destination pairs and 71 commodity groups, followed by distance decay gravitymodelling. Logistics costs were calculated by relating commodity-level freight flows to the costs of fulfilling associated logistical functions. The standard management approach of founding strategy development on market-driven segmentation provides a neutral input to steer rail reform discussions in South Africa. Market segmentation points to a dualistic rail reform agenda, enabling both a profit-driven core and a development-driven branch line network. Freight flow insights are steering the policy reform debate towards long-term freight strategy development and optimal freight logistics network design.

scholarly journals Framework for rail freight transport revival in South Africa

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 451-460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Hendrik Havenga ◽  
Wessel Pienaar
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Road Transport ◽  
Freight Transport ◽  
Rail Transport ◽  
Transport Infrastructure ◽  
Target Market ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Sustainable Fashion ◽  
Critical Requirement

Most long-distance land freight in South Africa is transported by road, which (i) places harsh constraints on the country’s transport infrastructure; and (ii) gives rise to excessive external costs. This is ascribable to the high demand for road freight transport, which is dependent on imported fuel at unstable prices and which is damaging to the environment. The critical requirement is to determine how much freight, and specifically which freight, can switch to rail transport. In order to identify the freight flows that can exploit the economic principles of rail transport, a market segmentation model was developed. A feasible target market was identified that enables key stakeholders (government, the national railway and major road transport service providers) to engage in ensuring that sufficient investment in suitable transport infrastructure takes place timeously to support the country’s economic growth and development ideals in a sustainable fashion.

scholarly journals A proposed regulatory framework for road and rail freight transport in South Africa

2007 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 265-278 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wessel Pienaar
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Value Added ◽  
Road Transport ◽  
Freight Transport ◽  
Rail Transport ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Dominant Form ◽  
Cost Of Transport ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Road Freight

The increase in the number of freight vehicles on South Africa’s rural road network has received substantial attention. Insinuations persist that long-distance road freight haulage is of a somewhat unsavoury economic nature, and that strict economic re-regulation of the land freight transport is necessary. During the 1970s road transport replaced rail carriage as the dominant form of long-distance freight transport (excluding minerals and ore) in South Africa. On long hauls road freight carriers transport certain primary products of an organic nature (such as timber, fish and agricultural produce), some semi-finished goods, many finished goods and most consumer goods. Road freight carriers are continuously gaining market share on long-distance links where rail transport is the more cost efficient mode. The greater value added by road freight carriers in comparison with rail transport through service effectiveness is often more than the cost premium paid for utilising their service rather than making use of rail transport. Throughout history, governments have involved themselves in transport. A diverse range of arguments have been advanced for this involvement in transport, including the following:Control of excessive competition, co-ordination of transport, integration of transport with economic policy, maintenance of safety, security, and order, provision of costly infrastructure, provision of public goods, recovery of the true resource cost of transport inputs, regulation of harmful conduct and externalities, restraint of monopoly power, and social support. A set of nine instruments can be identified that governments apply to influence the performance of the freight transport industry: Legislation, direct supply, fiscal measures, monetary measures, moral appeal and persuasion, policies relating to strategic commodities, procurement policy, provision of information, and research and development. The best prospects for a sound development of land freight transport activity in South Africa will be offered within the framework of a free-functioning freight transport market. 

scholarly journals Identification of key target markets for intermodal freight transport solutions in South Africa

2010 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joubert Van Eeden ◽  
Jan Havenga
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Freight Transport ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Long Distance Transport ◽  
Freight Logistics ◽  
Segmentation Approach ◽  
Role Players ◽  
Growth Initiative ◽  
State Of Affairs ◽  
Distance Transport

The Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa (AsgiSA) identified South Africa's freight logistics challenges as among the key binding constraints on the country's growth aspirations. The research presented here points to the structural imbalance between road and rail freight transport as one of the key contributors to this state of affairs. Most long-distance corridor transport has been captured by road. However, long-distance transport is a market segment that is very suitable for intermodal transportation : rail is utilised for the high-density, long-distance component and road for the feeder and distribution services at the corridor end points. A market segmentation approach is developed to identify the corridors and industries that are natural candidates for such solutions, thereby paving the way for role-players and stakeholders to initiate a dialogue on the development of appropriate solutions.

scholarly journals A Logistics Barometer for South Africa: Towards sustainable freight mobility

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan H. Havenga ◽  
Anneke De Bod ◽  
Zane P. Simpson ◽  
Nadia Viljoen ◽  
David King
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Industrial Development ◽  
Economic Structure ◽  
Freight Transport ◽  
Gravity Modelling ◽  
Transport Costs ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Long Distance Transport ◽  
Distance Transport ◽  
Key Interventions

Background: South Africa has a disproportionately high freight transport demand owing to industrial development far from ports, low domestic beneficiation and improper modal use. Historical freight transport policy supported primary economic development, failing to preempt the changing economic structure and the resulting freight transport needs, resulting in excessive transport costs and externalities.Objectives: To share the macroeconomic freight transport challenges revealed by South Africa’s Logistics Barometer, and to identify key interventions to address these.Method: Freight flows are modelled by disaggregating the national input–output model into 83 commodity groupings and 372 geographical areas, culminating in a 30-year forecast at 5-year intervals for three scenarios, followed by distance-decay gravity modelling to determine freight flows. Logistics costs are calculated by relating these flows to the costs of fulfilling associated logistic functions.Results: Long-distance transport remains the largest general freight typology and is, due to inefficient macro logistics design, extremely costly, both in terms of intrinsic and extrinsic costs.Conclusion: South Africa’s freight task will grow 2.5-fold by 2043. Logistics and externality costs are already untenable at current levels. The development of domestic intermodal solutions will support the drive towards sustainable freight mobility.

scholarly journals Calculation of freight externality costs for South Africa

2012 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefaan Swarts ◽  
David King ◽  
Zane Simpson ◽  
Jan Havenga ◽  
Leila Goedhals-Gerber
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Cost Model ◽  
Road Transport ◽  
Freight Transport ◽  
Transport Infrastructure ◽  
Transport Cost ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Demand Model ◽  
Transport Costs ◽  
The Cost

The purpose of this study is to quantify the marginal external costs associated with freight transport in South Africa. Six cost elements are included as externality cost items, namely, costs related to accidents, emissions, roadway land availability, policing, noise and congestion. Inputs in the calculations were a gravity-oriented freight flow model, a road transport cost model, actual transport costs for other modes, a warehousing cost survey, an inventory delay calculation and various national sources of information such as accident statistics and government budgets. Estimation techniques resulted in advances for externality cost measurement in South Africa. The quantification of the cost elements will be used to update the South African Freight Demand Model. The results show that the cost of transportation would have been 20% more if external factors were taken into account. The marginal rates of externalities can be used to develop scenarios based on alternative choices for South Africa's freight transport infrastructure configuration.

scholarly journals Economies of density in rail freight transport: Potential for utilisation in Southern Africa

2012 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 44-49
Author(s):  
Wessel Pienaar ◽  
Anneke de Bod ◽  
Jan H. Havenga
Keyword(s):  
Southern Africa ◽  
Road Transport ◽  
Freight Transport ◽  
African Region ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Dominant Form ◽  
Rail Freight ◽  
Significant Cost Reduction ◽  
Transport Potential

Road transport has replaced rail carriage as the dominant form of long-distance freight transport in Southern Africa. Road freight carriers can transport goods of various sizes and masses over long distances. This article highlights the significant cost-reduction opportunities possible through economies of density achievable in rail freight transport, especially over long distances, and the concomitant implications for increased profitability for railway organisations in Southern African countries. Traffic densification opportunities should focus on the development of transport corridors throughout the Southern African region.

scholarly journals Future Power Train Solutions for Long-Haul Trucks

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 2225
Author(s):  
Ralf Peters ◽  
Janos Lucian Breuer ◽  
Maximilian Decker ◽  
Thomas Grube ◽  
Martin Robinius ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cells ◽  
Co2 Emissions ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
New Technology ◽  
Co2 Reduction ◽  
Road Transport ◽  
Transport Sector ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Production Of Hydrogen

Achieving the CO2 reduction targets for 2050 requires extensive measures being undertaken in all sectors. In contrast to energy generation, the transport sector has not yet been able to achieve a substantive reduction in CO2 emissions. Measures for the ever more pressing reduction in CO2 emissions from transportation include the increased use of electric vehicles powered by batteries or fuel cells. The use of fuel cells requires the production of hydrogen and the establishment of a corresponding hydrogen production system and associated infrastructure. Synthetic fuels made using carbon dioxide and sustainably-produced hydrogen can be used in the existing infrastructure and will reach the extant vehicle fleet in the medium term. All three options require a major expansion of the generation capacities for renewable electricity. Moreover, various options for road freight transport with light duty vehicles (LDVs) and heavy duty vehicles (HDVs) are analyzed and compared. In addition to efficiency throughout the entire value chain, well-to-wheel efficiency and also other aspects play an important role in this comparison. These include: (a) the possibility of large-scale energy storage in the sense of so-called ‘sector coupling’, which is offered only by hydrogen and synthetic energy sources; (b) the use of the existing fueling station infrastructure and the applicability of the new technology on the existing fleet; (c) fulfilling the power and range requirements of the long-distance road transport.

scholarly journals Effects of Stocking and Transport Conditions on Physicochemical Properties of Meat and Acute-Phase Proteins in Cattle

Foods ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 252
Author(s):  
Ahmed A. Abubakar ◽  
Idrus Zulkifli ◽  
Yong M. Goh ◽  
Ubedullah Kaka ◽  
Azad B. Sabow ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physicochemical Properties ◽  
Acute Phase ◽  
Acute Phase Proteins ◽  
Stocking Density ◽  
Road Transport ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Amyloid A ◽  
Tropical Conditions ◽  
Meat Samples ◽  
Water Holding

This study’s objective was to evaluate the effects of distance and stocking density on physicochemical properties and oxidative stability of meat and acute-phase proteins in Brahman crossbred cattle transported by road under hot and humid tropical conditions. Sixty Brahman crossbred heifers were subjected to road transport from a cattle feedlot farm located in Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), Serdang, to a commercial ruminant abattoir in Shah Alam, Selangor. Animals were assigned to long and short distances and high, medium, and low stocking densities. The results revealed that the intensity of response significantly increased in meat samples from animals subjected to long-distance transportation and higher stocking density. Alpha-1-acid glycoprotein and serum amyloid-A values increased considerably and were different from the baseline values recorded at preload. In conclusion, the current results revealed that the color, pH, shear force values, water holding capacity (WHC), glycogen level, and malondilaldehyde assay (MDA) concentrations in meat and acute-phase proteins (APP) were affected by both distances and stocking densities, as evidenced by the significant changes recorded from the parameters above.

scholarly journals Modular Approach to Ultra-fast Charging Stations

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carola Leone ◽  
Michela Longo
Keyword(s):  
Impact Analysis ◽  
Road Transport ◽  
Modular Approach ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Charging Infrastructure ◽  
Charging Station ◽  
Fast Charging ◽  
Modular Architectures ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Fast Charging Station

AbstractRoad transport electrification is essential for meeting the European Union's goals of decarbonization and climate change. In this context, an Ultra-Fast Charging (UFC) system is deemed necessary to facilitate the massive penetration of Electric Vehicles (EVs) on the market; particularly as medium-long distance travels are concerned. Anyway, an ultra-fast charging infrastructure represents the most critical point as regards hardware technology, grid-related issues, and financial sustainability. Thus far, this paper presents an impact analysis of a fast-charging station on the grid in terms of power consumption, obtained by the Monte Carlo simulation. Simulation results show that it is not economical convenient size the assumed ultra-fast charging station for the maximum possible power also considering its high impact on the grid. In view of the results obtained from the impact analysis, the last part of the paper focuses on finding a method to reduce the power installed for the DC/DC stage while keeping the possibility for the electric vehicle to charge at their maximum power. To achieve this goal a modular approach is proposed. Finally, two different modular architectures are presented and compared. In both the solutions, the probability of having EVs charging at limited power is less than 5%.

Formulation and application of a multi-variable location quotient index in the Mpumalanga Province, South Africa

2021 ◽  
pp. 026909422110495
Author(s):  
Daniel F Meyer ◽  
Ferdinand Niyimbanira
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Strategy Development ◽  
Measurement Tool ◽  
Location Quotient ◽  
Regional Economic ◽  
Mpumalanga Province ◽  
Consistent Model ◽  
New Formula ◽  
Regional Economic Analysis ◽  
Employment Data

Leading regions drive economic growth and development, and it is important to determine which sectors are driving growth. Leading sectors need to be supported while lagging sectors need to be guided towards growth. The location quotient method has been used as a regional economic development measurement tool using a single variable, mostly employment data. This paper aims to formulate and apply a multi-variable location quotient index (MVLQI), which includes four variables, allowing for a more comprehensive and consistent model. A new formula was developed as part of the methodology, and a classification matrix and index coefficient values were categorised. The new model was tested and applied in the Mpumalanga Province, South Africa, between 2012 and 2017. A normal index was calculated for both years and a dynamic index based on the four variables included in the model. The study’s contribution is that the outcomes from the MVLQI provide analysts with more comprehensive and consistent results for economic strategy development. The new MVLQI could be used with success in regional economic analysis in identifying sectors with high levels of concentration, comparative advantage and calculation of multipliers.

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