Inland Waterway Transport System: Summary

7. Summary

Since inland waterway transport is not as distinctive as transport by other modes, it may be interesting to know what speaks in favor of inland waterway transport and what speaks against it.

What speaks for the transport by inland vessels are the low transport costs and CO2-emissions. Compared to trucks, inland vessels can cover further distances with a much larger transport capacity. This makes them very efficient and could even relieve the roads and rails.

The popularity of inland waterway vessels suffers greatly from the infrastructure. Ships are tied to the waterways and need terminals with appropriate facilities to reach their destinations. In addition, the transport is dependent on the prevailing water levels and the long transport time makes it hardly competitive.

Some more reasons for and against inland waterway transport are listed below.

Reasons for inland waterway transport

high single loading weights
large transport capacity (economy of scale - high efficiency)
processing of heavy goods traffic
punctuality (no congestion) and reliability
usually year-round navigability (365 days a year)
wide range of special ships
low transport costs
safety transport
environmentally friendly transport
spare capacities

Reasons against inland waterway transport

no complete area coverage
without own mooring place increased costs due to broken transport chains
dependence on water level, ice drift and fog
long transportation time
inertia/backwardness in the system itself e.g. outdated technology

Literature
Nuhn, H.; Hesse, M. (2006): Verkehrsgeographie, Schöningh Verlag, Paderborn.

Schulte, C. (1991): Logistik. Wege zur Optimierung des Material- und Informationsflusses. Verlag Franz Vahlen, München. pp. 64-65.

Wannenwetsch H.H. (2008): Transportsysteme. In: Intensivtraining Produktion, Einkauf, Logistik und Dienstleistung. Gabler, Wiesbaden.