Mainly on the Elbe River - Central Europe

3 COMPARATIVE ECONOMIC CONDITIONS FOR TRANSPORT MODE
SELECTION
The issue of comparative economic conditions for the selection of a transportation mode is
rather complicated. The selection differs according to:
• the type of transported commodities,
• the amount of transported goods (suitable for cargo vessel or the whole train, etc.),
• the requirements of the final customer (e.g. shipments for the production mode “just in
time“),
• other specific parameters.
It may seem that some of the required transport parameters are not of economic nature.
Generally, substitution for a selected transport mode is always possible with the corresponding
consequences, such as increased costs for either originator or recipient, or both. Therefore, it is
necessary to assess the transportation costs in a complex way.
3.1 COMPARISON OF COSTS FOR A TRIP REALISED BY ROAD, RAILWAY AND
INLAND WATER TRANSPORT
The system of charging individual trips realised by different transport modes is various. In case
of road and water transport, the difference in costs is not fundamentally different within EU member
countries. For road transport, there are two basic types of charging distinguished (performance fee
or time fee). For national waterway transport, charges are applied only on selected artificially
constructed sections of waterways. For railway transport, charges differ in each country.
It is necessary to emphasize the further development of future pricing of trips. The intention
of the EU is to charge road and railway transportation according to the impact on the environment.
There is a rising tendency in increasing road-tolls and railway fees. This fact may bring another
comparative advantages to the waterway transport.
In the following chapters, the basic system of charging different transport modes is presented
for relevant countries. To enable comparison, charges are converted to EUR as a common
currency. The following conversion rates were used: 1 EUR = 25,5 CZK and 1 EUR = 4,12 PLN.
A feasibility study for “Improvement of Conditions for the River Transport in Central Europe (mainly on the Elbe
River)“ realized within the ChemLog project 119