SOUTHAMPTON CORRIDOR
Current rail mode share is about 35%, and there is an annual average daily flow (AADF) of 4,800 articulated HGVs with five axles or more immediately north of the freight terminal. Counts on the M3/A34 corridor stay high to at least as far as the M4.
In the longer term (say 2030), increasing the mode share to 50% - and after allowing for growth of 2% a year - would reduce articulated HGV flows by 2,200, and thus more than meet the initial criterion of removing 2,000 HGVs AADF. Interestingly, once allowance is made for the additional passenger car units value of the largest vehicles (between three and four) this would be far higher and represent a total traffic reduction of 12% to 16% (to Newbury). While the data is not available to absolutely determine the exact route taken, the nature of this corridor suggests that most of this HGV traffic will continue at least as far as the M4.
The recent Network Rail Freight Network Study shows short and longer-term improvements potential to accommodate the planned (but as yet unfunded) upgrades on the rail network.
Rail freight could be increased by 50% or 60% on both the A14 and A34 corridors within the next five to seven years, based on a combination of current funded CP5 Network Rail projects and the (as yet) unfunded Network Rail Freight Network Study CP5 proposals. Further network upgrades to meet the full DfT benchmark of transferring 2,000 HGVs daily would be required beyond 2024, which would also allow the rail freight operators time to further develop the rail market to meet the DfT benchmark.
RAIL CAPACITY/POTENTIAL TRANSFER
As well as the Network Rail summary of proposed capacity increases, rail freight operating companies were contacted for an additional insight into capacity and market shares. The results have been combined and anonymised to protect commercial sensitivities.
The report covers all four corridors in detail, and this article continues to show the Southampton example. The number of HGV equivalents removed by existing length trains has been calculated using mode share and count data for the two ports - it is about 70 for Felixstowe and 80 for Southampton. For the purposes of the report, an average of 75 has been used.
There is now broadly an hourly freight path each way throughout the Southampton-West Midlands route (at about 640m length trains). For all destinations, there are some 20 intermodal trains per day from Southampton Maritime and Western Docks (lengths in the range of 550m-600m). There are also some six or seven specialised non-containerised trains per day via Eastern Docks (up to 680m long).
The intermodal paths are due to rise to two per hour when the Oxford area capacity work is complete in 2019-20. The Southampton Train Lengthening works will provide for 700m-775m intermodal train running. Thus, on the cautious assumption of an extra 100m productive length per current intermodal train, the works effectively create three to four additional trains per day’s worth of intermodal capacity on current paths, twice that once the new paths are available.
It is not possible to predict exactly how many HGV equivalents this could take, but it is clearly in the right scale - the equivalent of around 30 (new paths plus extra length) extra train paths (2,250 HGV equivalents) per day. Lengthening will also reduce costs, encouraging mode transfer.
However, the operators point out that there are other capacity issues relating to terminals and distribution centres, if these paths are used. The planning framework for SRFIs has been put in place and several are proceeding, but sufficient are needed to ensure terminal capacity will be available for the level of expansion identified in this report, and in other regional and national freight strategies.
The research showed that upgrading three out of the four chosen strategic rail corridors parallel to the Strategic Road Network could significantly reduce HGV volumes on the A14, A34 and M6 corridors. It also revealed that more research is needed to ascertain cargo types on the M62, which almost meets the DfT threshold.
This research confirms what we have long argued - that integrated rail and road planning into a cross-modal approach is the best way to reduce road congestion, collisions and pollution. Freight on Rail will calculate the significant improvements to air quality, CO2 emissions and safety benefits of modal shift as a separate but related exercise, to illustrate the fuller socio-economic benefits of rail freight.
