FREIGHT TRANSPORTATION PLANNING. IN: HANDBOOK OF TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING

Abstract

This chapter describes how planning for freight is a complex and difficult task. Because of the differences between public and private sector operations and planning and the variability of commodities and the means for shipping commodities, the ability of a public planning agency to grasp the breadth of this activity is problematic at best. However, if transportation planners are to make more effective decisions in the current political and economic environment, a method for incorporating freight into the planning process is critical. This chapter has attempted to provide a backbone on which to build a process for doing this while alerting the planner to the potential limitations and problems that could be encountered.