ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on operations research (OR) and intermodal freight transportation. Intermodal freight transportation occurs in an environment that is shaped by multiple stakeholders: shippers, carriers and government institutions. While OR methods play a role in the decision making and planning of all three stakeholders mentioned earlier, vast majority of research has focused on the supply side. Much of the planning of the supply of freight transportation services corresponds to design of a network of terminals through which customer freight is routed from its origin to its destination. OR, according to the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS), one of the leading international organisations serving both academics and practitioners of OR, is 'a discipline that deals with the application of advanced analytical methods to help make better decisions'. The premise of OR is that instead of making decisions based on intuition or 'hunches', they can be made via a rational, systematic and data-driven process.
