Within the maritime transport sector, data and information have the potential to change the way we work for the betterness. Increasingly shipping companies are generating, storing and reporting data, on their position, their engines, their products and their emissions. As a result, data is sometimes referred to as the new gold and people often protect it in the same way. However, unlike gold, data has actually more value when it is shared and used in collaboration with others. [...]@en

The cost-benefit analysis (CBA) is a widely used approach for the appraisal of transport projects, but criticisms on it have led to the development of alternatives such as the BENEFIT approach. This book chapter analyzes three cases of infrastructure investments in port areas in Belgium and the Netherlands, by application of the BENEFIT approach. We find inter alia that differences in country performance on internationally accepted indicators can influence differences in infrastructure investments between countries. Moreover, infrastructure projects with larger revenue-generating possibilities will influence the PPP (public-private partnership) potential of this type of projects in a positive way. Applying different appraisal methods to the same infrastructure project might help to arrive at infrastructure project investment approvals that are well-documented.@en

This paper analyzed the market developments and identified the current situation and challenges of container barge transport in deepsea and inland terminals. It was revealed that the major challenges of container IWT include; inefficient handling of barges, poor planning and coordination, lack of flexibility in container barge transport and low water levels. To solve these challenges, innovative solutions such as mobile terminals, vessel trains, cargo reconstruction, and smart navigation are proposed. The impact of these innovations is currently being examined by using the discrete event simulation (DES) model. @en

The use of containers in the freight transport system has increased dramatically over the years. This is as a result of the interplay between macro-- and microeconomic factors and the liberalization of markets, thereby enhancing the development of international logistics services within transportation systems. The physical distribution of cargo in this system involves an integrated logistics chain process to transport the containerized goods from the production location to the consumption location. Different logistics chain models have been used to examine the flow of the containerized goods from origin to destination, however, these models mostly capture a specific module of the chain. To address this, the paper examines the whole logistics chain by linking the interaction between the logistics cost, time, mode choice and assignment to the network, while connecting with the different innovations that could make container IWT more competitive. In doing this, a conceptual logistics model is developed which includes the logistics cost, time, and mode choice sub-models. The two first sub-models are developed at a disaggregated level to examine the logistics decisions for the individual cargoes. The logistics decisions are derived from the minimization of transport-related costs and time and form the input of the mode choice and assignment sub-models.@en

The overall objective of this research is to enhance the attractiveness of container inland waterway transport (IWT) and improve its competitiveness by increasing its modal share while reducing the negative societal and economic impact of container road transport. This will be achieved through the development of innovative logistics concepts such as cargo reconstruction, use of vessel trains and improved port operations with mobile terminals. At the current stage of the research, the first objective is to identify the actors involved in the system, preferences of these actors, important KPIs and the current practice for transport operations.@en