De benefits of rail freight compared to other means of transportation
You are a forwarder, trader or you run a webshop and import goods from Asia. Your main concern is that these goods arrive on time at the right place and destination. There are different ways in which you can have goods shipped from (and to) Asia: sea freight, air freight, road freight. We are happy to tell you more about these different means of transport and introduce you to a method of transport that may not have occurred to you yet: rail freight.
Air freight
The most common way to transport your goods from one continent to another: by air. Not surprising because it is the fastest way and there are no restrictions when it comes to the lack of routes. It is efficient, fast and unfortunately also very polluting. An airplane emits a lot of CO2, which warms the earth and therefore threatens many plants and animals with extinction. This has repercussions on the liveability of our planet.
The Paris Climate Agreement has been signed by 195 countries with the aim of reducing CO2 emissions. Many organizations are therefore obliged to make adjustments. One of those adjustments could be to choose other modes of transport to reduce emissions. More and more organizations will therefore look for an alternative to transport their goods. In addition to this, air freight is relatively expensive.
The pros and cons of air freight
+ The fastest way to transport goods
+ Efficient
- The highest CO2 emissions and therefore environmentally unfriendly
- Most expensive mode of transport
Road freight
Transporting your goods by road is one of the oldest ways of transporting cargo. Within the European borders, this can be an excellent solution in certain areas. Transporting goods between different continents, is a whole different story. Difficult routes, legislation, toll roads and a labour-intensive process. Due to safety regulations, the driver has to take frequent breaks, which makes it almost impossible to transport cargo from Asia to Europe in one breath over the road. Freight transport by road is therefore often combined with other means of transport.
The pros and cons of Road freight
+ Cheaper than air freight
- Faced with many external factors such as regulations, difficult roads and toll roads
- Load limit
- More security risks such as accidents or robberies
- Inefficient beteen continents
- Long delivery times
Sea freight
The least polluting way to organize your freight transport between continents is through sea freight. In addition, this type of transportation has the advantage that remote islands are no issue. Sea freight is the least polluting and slowest way of transporting goods. Shipping containers can be months in transit and they cannot navigate small waters. Sea freight between Asia and Europe is a solution to combine with other means of transport to connect the islands in this way, but is less suitable for covering the entire route.
The pros and cons of sea freight
+ Emits the least CO2 compared to other modes of transport
+ Cheap way of transport
+ Connects islands to the mainland
- Must often be used in combination with other means of transport
- Long delivery times
Rail freight
When you combine the advantages of the different modes of transport, rail freight is the best choice in many ways. The emission of CO2 emission is 27 times lower compaired to air. Delivery time are twice faster compared to sea freight and it is not limited by, for example, toll roads. In addition, it can carry much more cargo than planes. This makes rail freight the most attractive and cost efficient option.
The pros and cons of rail freight
- Less fast than the airplane
- Construction of railway needed
- Limited to the mainland
+ No restrictions on (toll) roads
+ Add many containers by linking extra wagons
+ An environmentally friendly solution
+ Most efficient
The optimal combination between the different modes of freight transport
At Rail Bridge Cargo we combine the advantages of the various means of transport so that your organization becomes more effective in the market. We do this by combining the advantages of road, sea and air freight. In addition, we do not limit ourselves only to the mainland, but we ensure that the entire continent of Asia is connected to Europe by means of tailor-made solutions with intermodal transport. Do you want to be more competitive in your market? Challenge our rail expert and book a test shipment.
