A Model of Transatlantic Intermodal Freight Transportation Between the European Continent and the United States

This paper deals with intermodal transportation of goods from Europe to the United States. The main objective is the development of a mathematical model called Transatlantic multi-mode container routing problem. It provides a tool for network optimization in transportation science. The developed model enables users to determine the optimal collaborative routing in a network system that achieves the minimization of costs for a company that ships a single commodity from multiple origins to multiple destinations. The model consists of network of maritime shipping lines between the ports and then networks of road and railway transportation on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. In order to develop the model it was necessary to make assumptions, define sets, parameters, decision variables, constraints and objective function. Branch and cut algorithm used by GAMS modelling software provides the solution of the model. Short analysis of trends and statistics of road and rail transportation as complements to maritime transportation on both continents is also presented.