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Abstract Effective ground transportation modes linkage with the seaport plays a crucial role in facilitating smooth cargo movement from marine transportation mode to the inland areas and vice versa. Unlike road transportation, rail linkage is a cost-effective and environmentally friendly option. Inadequate sea rail connectivity within the seaport hampers cargo movement speed and impacts overall port capacity. This systematic review places emphasis on sea rail intermodal transportation at the seaport. The review categorizes and analyses previous research contributions to the sea-rail intermodal transportation system, and is organized into five categories: performance evaluation, problem-solving methodologies, planning issues, factors affecting sea rail intermodal transportation, and enhancement strategies within the context of sea rail intermodal transportation. The study discerns current research patterns and identifies gaps within the existing literature while also offering insights into potential future research avenues.

Abstract The extension of existing container terminals or the creation of new ones introduces new logistical challenges, including topographic issues and increased distances between the quays and storage yards located several kilometers away from the quay (dry port). These challenges are complex to evaluate analytically and directly impact the acceleration, deceleration, and average speed of a truck which in turn affect the productivity and synchronization of the overall terminal logistics. This paper proposes a transportation simulation model that incorporates detailed descriptions of the topographical and geometrical restrictions. Our simulation model evaluates various scenarios for container transportation logistics, including varying road design terminals and truck fleet size to enhance productivity. A case study from a potential container terminal on Canada’s St. Lawrence River is used to demonstrate the simulation model. Several scenarios with different designs are tested and the simulation provides numerical results for supporting decision makers.

This paper provides a review of vessel route planning with a focus on safety considerations and the complexity of multi-objective decision-making processes. This complexity arises from the difficulty of finding an appropriate balance between several objectives and safety concerns, often conflicting, that adequately reflects the preferences of the decision makers. The maritime industry faces the challenge of enhancing vessel route optimization for safety, operational efficiency, and cost-effectiveness. We thus describe quantitative methods to find routes that effectively balance multiple objectives, including safety, fuel consumption, and route duration. A significant focus is on the complexity of multi-criteria decision making in this area, highlighting various methodologies for balancing the different objectives. Safety is critical in this context, involving a thorough consideration of navigational risks, environmental factors, and compliance with International Maritime Organization regulations. Specifically, we introduce quantitative approaches for integrating key safety aspects into the decision-making process, including dynamic stability, the probability of bow slamming, and the occurrence of green water.

Background: In northern countries, spring requires the removal of large volumes of abrasive materials used in winter road maintenance. This sweeping process, crucial for safety and environmental protection, has traditionally relied on conventional mechanical brooms. Recent technological innovations, however, have introduced more efficient and environmentally friendly sweeping solutions; Methods: This study provides a comprehensive comparative analysis of the environmental and operational performance of these innovative sweeping systems versus conventional methods. Using simulation models based on real-world data and integrating fuel consumption models, the analysis replicates sweeping behaviors to assess both operational and environmental performance. A sensitivity analysis was conducted using these models, focusing on key parameters such as the collection rate, the number of trucks, the payload capacity, and the truck unloading duration; Results: The results show that the innovative sweeping system achieves an average 45% reduction in GHG emissions per kilometer compared to the conventional system, consistently demonstrating superior environmental efficiency across all resources configurations; Conclusions: These insights offer valuable guidance for service providers by identifying effective resource configurations that align with both environmental and operational objectives. The approach adopted in this study demonstrates the potential to develop decision-making support tools that balance operational and environmental pillars of sustainability, encouraging policy decision-makers to adopt greener procurement policies. Future research should explore the integration of advanced technologies such as IoT, AI-driven analytics, and digital twin systems, along with life cycle assessments, to further support sustainable logistics in road maintenance.

In winter road maintenance, abrasives are spread on roads to ensure user safety. These abrasives must be swept in the spring and often end up in landfills. To reduce landfilling and the consumption of non-renewable resources, previous work has demonstrated the potential of reusing collected street sweepings for the production of abrasives. However, the current contractual approach of the linear supply chain requires revision to enable the sharing of financial gains between the road authority and the service provider to achieve a win–win situation, primarily considering the uncertainty in the quantity of abrasives spread, which directly impacts the service provider’s profit. This study proposes two closed-loop supply chain structures and analyzes three contract models. Results from a case study in a highway context in Quebec, Canada reveal that transitioning from a linear supply chain to a closed-loop supply chain generates an average systemic financial gain of 9%. Furthermore, a sensitivity analysis on the average quantity of abrasive spread demonstrates that when the road authority buys back reusable sweepings from the service provider at market value, it enables the sharing of a portion of the gain. Consequently, compared to a linear approach, adopting circular economy strategies in the winter road maintenance supply chain mitigates the potential profit loss of the service provider caused by uncertainty.

Abstract Considered an essential link in the logistics chain, the port has undergone various restructurings and evolutions throughout generations. Many economic, socioeconomic, political, and environmental factors require ports to move towards digitalization and sustainability. To this end, ports are required to change into smart ports that align with new Industry 4.0 practices to ensure their sustainability. This study proposes a systematic review of the literature on the emerging smart port concept to continue the work started by Buiza et al. and Molavi et al., aiming at a broader and comprehensive understanding of the smart port concept by business domain to fill this gap in literature. This research proposes 11 smart port characteristics grouped into 7 business domains. A definition is also proposed to update the concept.

The growth of goods transported by ship affects the entire maritime industry, which is central to the global supply chain. Faced with an increased pressure from the industry, ports need greater visibility on the flow of goods and logistics operations. To tackle this challenge, improvement opportunities as well as weaknesses must be identified in order to define an efficient data acquisition strategy that will allow port authorities to enhance their current visibility within their port ecosystem. This article presents the simulation of a digital shadow based on a Canadian port case study. The study uses the simulation of a digital shadow to diagnose a Canadian port authority’s current visibility, with an accent on data accuracy, in order to identify improvement opportunities aimed at overcoming weaknesses identified in a current practice scenario and then compare the performance of the current system with said improvements in a second scenario. To our knowledge, this is the first simulation study on visibility performance assessment in a port’s digital shadow.

Abstract Sea-rail intermodal transportation around the globe faces complex challenges that affect the satisfaction of shippers' needs. An efficient cargo flow between the port and its hinterland depends particularly on efficient connectivity between the seaport and rail. Sea-rail intermodal can be a cost-efficient and green alternative to unimodal road transportation. Inefficient sea-rail connectivity in the seaport slows cargo flow and affects port capacity. Various factors could affect the system's efficiency and create bottlenecks in the system. A case study adopts a discrete event-based simulation approach to assess bottlenecks in the sea-rail connection that affect cargo flow and generate congestion. The data were collected from the Port of Trois-Rivières, the focus of our investigation. Our objective is to identify bottlenecks in the sea-rail intermodal system in the port, identify strategies to mitigate bottlenecks and accelerate cargo flow. To this end, we examined various scenarios, including an increase in the share of trains for cargo transportation and an increase in the number of daily train convoys. The findings underscore that elevating the train share to 40% and introducing two daily train services yield significant enhancements in key performance indicators. Noteworthy advantages encompass a reduction in the average time ships spend in the port, a decrease in the average waiting time for trains to depart from the port, an overall improvement in cargo handling efficiency within the port, and a notable alleviation of bottlenecks within the system.