Does Drop and Pull Transport Have a Chance? The Case of China

Mingyue Shao, Dongxu Chen, Xiaolong Lu, Xuefei Liu and Zhongzhen Yang ()
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Mingyue Shao: Faculty of Maritime and Transportation, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315000, China
Dongxu Chen: Faculty of Maritime and Transportation, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315000, China
Xiaolong Lu: Faculty of Maritime and Transportation, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315000, China
Xuefei Liu: Faculty of Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 119077, Singapore
Zhongzhen Yang: Faculty of Maritime and Transportation, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315000, China

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 13, 1-20

Abstract: To determine why drop and pull transport is developing so slowly in China and whether there is a chance for its further development, this paper formulates a model to compute two threshold values of freight demand, namely the value that makes drop and pull transport profitable and the value at which it is more profitable than traditional truck transport. The results indicates that the most favorable freight market for drop and pull transport has a demand distribution in which most demand is concentrated on a few highway corridors and approximately equal in both directions along each corridor. Based on a comparison between the computed results and the actual demand distribution, it is found that the current Chinese highway freight market is not ideal for fostering drop and pull transport. The results further indicate that specific model markets should be selected for trial drop and pull transport. Since drop and pull transport will only be successful in a market with favorable freight demand distribution, successful attempts in model markets are the key to expanding the use of drop and pull transport.

Keywords: drop and pull transport; highway freight; freight demand; transport organization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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