{"id":147573,"date":"2024-11-06T20:39:24","date_gmt":"2024-11-06T10:39:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.railfreight.com\/?p=57692"},"modified":"2024-11-06T20:39:24","modified_gmt":"2024-11-06T10:39:24","slug":"its-hard-to-convince-shippers-to-use-combined-transport-services","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=147573","title":{"rendered":"\u2018It\u2019s hard to convince shippers to use combined transport services\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lahaye Global Logistics is a French family-owned road haulage and logistics company based in Brittany. Railfreight.com spoke to Bastien Thirion, Lahaye\u2019s director of rail freight, about how their Rennes-Lille service has performed over the past 18 months, what the response from the market has been and whether the company is now looking to launch new intermodal routes.<\/strong>
\n<\/span>Thirion began by revealing that it has been hard going convincing shippers and road hauliers to use the Rennes-Lille combi service. It was launched in 2023, covering a distance of around 570 kilometres. It operates three weekly round trips on the route, with traction provided by Captrain France.<\/p>\n

The service is pitched largely at ocean freight shippers in Brittany and the wider western France region with the inland port of Lille providing connections to Northern Europe seaports such as Dunkirk, Zeebrugge, Antwerp, and Rotterdam. But it is also catering for demand for goods bound for and originating in the region around Lille.<\/p>\n

Combatting ‘all-road’ mindset’<\/h2>\n

\u201cWhile there are shippers who are committed to modal shift as part of a corporate strategy in support of sustainable transport solutions, there are others, in the majority, for whom the switch to train-borne freight amounts to a radical step, a real change from the all-road mindset they\u2019ve adopted to for so long, while at the same time a novelty attracting their curiosity,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd for ourselves, at Lahaye, the task of marketing a full train has been a new and challenging experience and we have not been helped by current market conditions.\u201d With loads heavily in favour of ex-Rennes freight in the launch phase, the service is now posting load factors of around 50% in both directions and Thirion remains hopeful there is scope to increase the frequency of the service to five round trips per week at some point.<\/p>\n

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Image: \u00a9 Lahaye Global Logistics<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The service transports a broad range of consumer and industrial goods \u2013 foodstuffs (ambient and controlled temperature), construction materials, joinery fittings and dangerous goods. Large shipper customers include Sodiaal (dairy products), Leroy Merlin, the DIY retail chain and Nestl\u00e9 Purina Petcare.<\/p>\n

One of the main components of ex-Lille traffic are large volumes of Heineken brand beers. The service probably accounts for around 5% of the total freight flows between Rennes and Lille, an indication of how marginal combi transport currently is this route but also highlighting the vast potential that exists for goods to take the train, Thirion noted.<\/p>\n