ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the cost and charging patterns of the system and those of its main competitor—road haulage. This competition with road haulage imposes economic constraints which are of a more flexible and less clearly defined nature, but nevertheless highly significant in their effect on the freightliner system's growth. In Road Track Costs report overlooked the importance of the road collection and delivery operation to the freightliner operation with its use of heavy vehicles for short trips. The chapter analyses the movement of a consignment which is compatible with both container and lorry configurations, and also analyses the movement of a consignment which is not sufficient to justify a complete lorry or container for the transport operation. Compared with the road system the freightliner involves the following operations over and above those of the road haulage of a full load: inter-vehicle transfer of the loaded container at the two terminals, and a collection and delivery operation using heavy articulated lorries.
