Innovations in intermodal freight transport: Lessons from Europe

Over the last two decades many innovations in intermodal freight transport have been proposed to boost the market share of intermodal transport. However, only few of them have materialized. In this paper we explore why innovations in intermodal transport are difficult to realize and how barriers for their successful implementation could be overcome. Our focus is on European initiatives. We describe a number of initiatives, succeeded and not (yet) succeeded, and explore their particular strengths and weaknesses. Next, by linking the description of these initiatives to a framework of innovation adoption, we derive critical issues in the implementation of intermodal innovations. We conclude that besides substantive success factors, related to costs and benefits, there are other strategic and process related factors that play at least an equally important role in the realization of these innovations. These include the balance of power in the supply chain, and the alignment of perspectives and preferences of different stakeholders.