Rotterdam is Europe’s largest port, but rail freight still plays a limited role compared to road and barge transport. RailFreight.com had an exclusive interview with the COO of the Port of Rotterdam, Berte Simons, who highlighted the current challenges and future opportunities to boost the modal shift.
“I am a big fan of rail freight, which should not doubt its importance”, Simons stated, adding that the port is investing in various key areas to make it easier for customers to choose this mode of transport. Regarding infrastructure, for instance, one of the main projects is Maasvlakte Zuid, a new railway yard expected to be ready in 2027 which will serve the Maasvlakte 2 industrial area. “Once it is ready, there will be no excuses not to use rail”.
Sharing idle assets
Other important investments are being made “to stimulate companies to work together and facilitate information flows”, Simons said. One example is the recently launched ‘Track Together’ project. Six of the main rail operators at the port can now share shunting capacity through a new app called PortFlow, providing back-up procedures in case of need.
Sharing assets such as shunting locomotives, or rather renting them to other operators through an auction-based procedure, helps avoid leaving them standing idle. “They are capital-intensive assets. When you are not utilising them it is a waste of capital”, she pointed out. With the new Track Together initiative, the hope is to make rail freight more flexible.
These systems should be easier to implement in ports, Simons explained. Goods either start or end their journeys here, in most cases, providing a fixed variable. Thus, ports are the most suitable locations for similar measures and prove that they work. It is all about matching timing and location of the idle assets to the needs of other operators, Simons mentioned.
Infrastructure works
Another well-known challenge for European rail freight is the amount of infrastructure upgrades that are taking place all over the continent after years of neglect. “We hear from forwarders that the infrastructure works in Germany are impacting the choices of shippers, which are impacting the modal shift. We are confident that things will pick up once the work is done, but the reality is that it will take a long time”, she said.
These projects are indeed a necessity to make rail freight more competitive, Simons acknowledged. However, there are often complications which lead to delays. “This is when it becomes painful”, she stressed. Customers choose different modes of transport not only because the infrastructure is not ready, but also because there is uncertainty on when it will be ready.
Geopolitical tensions
One final point Simons touched upon is the current geopolitical situation. “We are saddened by the chain of events in the Middle East”, she underlined. For Rotterdam, the impact has not yet been visible in terms of throughput or ships calling at the port. On the other hand, Simons did not exclude that the current fuel crisis will have consequences. One thing that did change, she added, is that ships are now bypassing the Middle East and travelling directly from Asia to European ports.