Freight shipment modal split and its environmental impacts: An exploratory study

Abstract

Freight transportation has become a major source of energy consumption and air pollution, and emissions rates vary significantly across different modes. Understanding freight shipment mode choice under various economic and engineering factors will help assess the environmental impacts of freight shipment systems at the national level. This paper develops a binomial logit model for two dominating modes (truck and rail) and shows how this model is incorporated into an environmental impact analysis. The framework will be useful to policy makers to assess the impacts of freight movements on air quality and public health and to mitigate those adverse impacts.