Get on the right track

Operators are finding ways to cross the barriers to transporting high-cube containers from southern ports to northern inland depots by rail. But gauge clearance issues hinder connectivity.

Isabel Lesto reports

Tim Robinson, head of strategic development at rail operator First GBRf, believes gauge enhancement and improved links between ports and the hinterland would encourage greater use of rail in the north-east.

"In the long-term, and as part of the Northern Gateway [terminal development project at Teesport], we are keen to have a proper rail link for high-cube boxes, " he says.

The East Coast Main Line (ECML) is a vital north-south artery for traffic from London to Scotland, but there are problems connecting to it when carrying highcube containers.

Martyn Pellew, former group development director at PD Ports, says Teesport’s target rail markets are Scotland, West Midlands and Yorkshire. Part of the plan for the Northern Gateway was to have an extra 10 trains a day.

"That will not succeed unless we have high-cube capacity, " he says. "We’re disappointed that Network Rail has not committed to gauge enhancement."

Pellew estimates that it would cost £3m (US$5m) to create this capability from Teesport to Darlington and on to the ECML, and more than ten times that to provide a link to the Midlands line and the northwest.

"As capital sums go, this is not a lot, " he says.

While it has been government policy to encourage rail freight, on the practical side not a lot has been done in this area.

"If this is not developed in three to five years, people will get used to using road."

The port of Tyne has been gauge-cleared for high-cube boxes, giving it a connection from Tyne Dock to the ECML.

"The issue is getting customers to see that, " says port CEO Andrew Moffat, adding that currently there is not much going in or out by containers on rail. The problem is with connectivity all the way south.

Ports on the Humber further south are also pushing for connectivity. John Fitzgerald, port director of ABP-run Grimsby and Immingham, argues that the Humber ports are a landbridge for Ireland and the inability to move high-cube boxes to Scotland is a problem.

"There has been development to support bulk traffic around Immingham and Hull, but, for further development of container traffic, we need gauge enhancement and upgrades, " he says.

High-cube containers (9ft 6in high) make up 45-50% of all boxes coming into the UK, and estimates suggest the figure will reach 80% by 2015.

High-cubes are far more cost-effective for shippers, but in the UK, at least twothirds of the rail network is off-limits without adjusted-height wagons.

Low-liner wagons, which Freightliner and First GBRF are using to solve the problem are expensive and have a short lifespan. Additionally, there are still constraints on some routes. From Felixstowe you can reach Birmingham, Manchester and Liverpool with standard wagons, but not from Southampton and Thamesport.

Network Rail has committed itself to gauge clearance from Southampton. But while the original plan was for clearance by 2010, this will not be completed until 2011. Once complete, 9ft 6in containers will be able to pass through to the West Coast Main Line (WCML) on standard wagons.

Network Rail has also promised investment to develop the Strategic Freight Network, which links Southampton to the ECML, and the first stage of capacity works on the Felixstowe-Nuneaton corridor.

Funds have also been allocated to enable longer trains to operate on key routes.

Freightliner runs intermodal services from Felixstowe, Southampton, Tilbury and Thamesport to Doncaster, Leeds and Cleveland inland terminals.

Last year, it introduced a daily high-cube container service from Felixstowe to Doncaster, taking the total number of intermodal trains from the port to the northern hub to three a day. Since the route is not gauge-cleared it was only able to do this by introducing lower-wagons.

However Keith Gray, commercial director at the operator’s intermodal division, maintains this is not a solution to gauge issues. The problem with using lowerwagons, he says, is that they can only carry a 40ft box instead of the 60ft capacity on regular wagons.

Gauge-clearance from Southampton to the WCML will be complete in 2011, however linking to Doncaster will take longer.

"Once that happens, we’ll see an increase, it will open up a whole new element of the market, " says Gray.

First GBRf’s Robinson admits that 2009 was a hard year, with pressure on both volumes and rates. However by the end of 2009, First GBRf was up an estimated 18% on volumes on 2008.

Robinson attributes the increase partly to Maersk’s move from calling at Southampton to Felixstowe. While it does not work directly with the line, it does work with major forwarders using the carrier.

Mostly he attributes the increase to the fact that historically "spot" customers are converting from road to contract volume and rail.

"This is down to the fact that rail does offer benefits, over the right distance. Our customers are looking more seriously at rail because of price, and are working themselves out of road contracts, " he says.