Activity optimisation and efficiency in terminals represent a real challenge for operators and for the development of the freight transport market, especially since the change of the market demand and the increase of freight volumes have impact on operations the which have to comply with imposed criteria.
An important aspect remains the organisation of terminals in a manner which should comply with the market needs, for the purpose of increasing capacity. This does not depend only on developing the terminal lines but only on their position, on the traffic congestion level, on connections with the other means of transport and implicitly with distribution points. Terminals are located near the industrial sites which have connections with transport infrastructures, and in order to ensure a better use of the railway infrastructure its exploitation coordination is necessary.
In order to allow the freight loading/unloading and the integration of railway services with services of the other means of transport, the existence of efficient interconnections and the organisation of the infrastructure in terminals are essential for the purpose of turning operations profitable. Beside the equipping with the adequate technological equipments, terminals need the organisation of the necessary infrastructure which should constitute an advantage in the transport and shunting efficiency which determine the reduction of freight delivery times. In order to face the increase of freight volumes, the operations in terminals should be flexible, and in the case of the infrastructure, adequate reanalysis and position are necessary so that it would become a decisive factor in the capacity increase. Infrastructure positioning is extremely important when the market records a dynamic increase of the traffic which requests the efficient and adequate use of the limited capacities. The accessibility optimisation in terminals and the availability of infrastructure in conditions of traffic increase stimulation are vital elements for an operator which, in order to develop its business and to attract clients, needs to improve the punctuality, the operational efficiency and the availability of schedules.
Under these circumstances, the organisation of terminals is vital for traffic optimisation and it is not only about investments, but also about the creation of solution packages which should allow a high degree of traffic flexibility. A performing infrastructure and the accomplishment of facilities for activity efficiency help to optimise the capacity of terminals. “We operated several terminals and I may say that by implementing of efficient solutions, the shift of traffic from the to railways may be easily done, but there should be technology and solutions in terminals, not only in cars. It is normal that investments should be important, but the reduction and elimination of additional costs on the organisation of activities in terminals and the reduction of the freight movement time are extremely important when we speak about the increase of freight traffic”, declared Eric Possegger, manager of Terminal Service Austria within Rail Cargo Austria.
Therefore, the adequate positioning of the infrastructure in terminals becomes a precondition of the availability of efficient planning of trains and containers (both as regards schedule elaboration and their position in terminals) which determines the creation of different opportunities of vehicles and freight arrangement. The planning of the infrastructure use will also determine the increase of equipment performance in order to process freight volumes and implement new infrastructure development plans which should facilitate the activity of terminals and should optimise traffic.
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