Freight Modeling: An Overview of International Experiences (With Discussion)

Compared with passenger transportation modeling, freight modeling is young, and it is developing quickly in different directions all over the world. The objective of this paper is to summarize the international state of the art in freight modeling, with a focus on developments in Europe. Key issues in freight policy that create a growing demand for freight demand modeling are described briefly. Some of them are common to the freight agendas in many places of the world, and some are more pertinent to the European situation. A conceptual framework of the freight system is sketched first. Three emerging areas of innovation in freight modeling that have been driven by the European transport policy context and are relevant for U.S. freight policy are identified: freight–economy linkages, logistics behavioral modeling, and freight trips and networks. The state of the art in these areas is described, and areas of further modeling work are identified. Finally, the main ideas of the paper are summarized, including the challenge of creating new data sources concerning freight flows.