What are the benefits of switching from road to rail?
There’s a lot to weigh up when choosing your freight options. Although road transport is very popular, rail transport has great advantages you can’t ignore…
Environmental benefits
When it comes to environmental benefits, rail freight is a much more sustainable method compared to road. Using trains can reduce CO2 emissions up to a huge 76%, which helps to mitigate the effects of transport emissions on global warming.
Reliability and speed
Rail freight is known for its reliability and speed, with operators achieving 97% reliability on the premium services they run for retailers. Freight trains continue to achieve higher speeds with heavier payloads as operators invest in better locomotives and wagons.
Reduced congestion and better safety
Traffic congestion causes huge inconvenience for travellers as well as affecting: travel costs, time, accessibility, productivity and pollution levels. When opting for rail, each freight train removes between 33 and 76 lorries from the roads, resulting in 1.6 billion fewer HGV kilometres every year!
Swapping out lorries for trains also prevents about 600 casualties a year, making it a much safer option.
Road rates are much less stable
The cost of road haulage fluctuates based on conditions of the market. In the past year we’ve seen costs rise following a surge in inflation linked to supply chain bottlenecks and rocketing energy costs.
Rail rates are more stable which helps for budgeting and forecasting. The EU is also calling for 30% of all transport over 500km to be rail by 2030 and are supporting businesses to make this move.
Cost-effectiveness
The rail freight industry is constantly adapting with companies investing and trying to reduce costs for customers. For instance, they have increased the payloads they can carry, with tonnage per train up by 80% in the last decade leading to a more economical mode of transportation.
Improved air quality
Exposure to airborne pollutants can damage our airways and organs and increase the risk of cancer, lung disease and other long-term ailments. Rail accounts for only 0.4% of EU transport emissions but carries approximately 18% of all goods and 8% of all passengers.
Rail produces 10x less small particulate matter than road haulage and as much as 15x less nitrogen oxide for the equivalent mass hauled.
Convinced to make the change? Speak to one of our experts to make the switch to Intermodal services.
