Service charge and capacity selection of an inland river port with location-dependent shipping cost and service congestion

The inland waterway transportation has attracted a lot of attention worldwide in the last fifteen years. This paper studies the location, service charge and capacity decision of an inland river port to maximize its revenue or profit. The cargo shippers are assumed to be uniformly distributed along the inland river and can be shipped to the junction port via pure road transportation service or transshipment service with the inland river port. The natural heterogeneity of the river’ navigational condition is modeled by a location-dependent waterway transportation cost and the service congestion on the port is captured by the M/M/1 queueing model. We analytically investigate the properties of the optimal solutions for various decision problems associated with the inland river port. The effects of the natural heterogeneity and port service congestion of those optimal solutions are investigated. Those theoretical results are carefully examined in the case study of the Yangtze River.     

铁路效益发展规律与我国铁路产业发展

针对目前社会和学术界存在的关于我国铁路产业发展态势的各种争论。从铁路效益发展的基本规律入手进行研判。从经济学理论来看，铁路效益存在着二律背反规律、业务增值规律、精益生产规律、技术进步规律、制度创新规律、国家扶持规律等六大规律，认为我国铁路产业处于运输化发展的中期阶段，有着良好的客货运输需求支撑，发展基本面良好。我国铁路需转变经营管理体制机制，大力发展多元化经营业务，提高增值收益。国家需改变交通运输公共政策，加大对铁路产业的必要投入，由铁道部统筹铁路改革与发展方案，推进我国铁路产业稳妥渐进变革。     

The multi-class, multi-criterion traffic equilibrium and the efficiency of congestion pricing

We consider the effect of the so-called second-best tolls on the price of anarchy of the traffic equilibrium problem where there are multiple classes of users with a discrete set of values of time. We derive several bounds of the price of anarchy for this problem when the tolls are considered and not considered as part of the system cost, with the time-based criterion and the cost-based criterion, respectively. All the bounds give us useful information on the effect of the tolls, which can be used to design network toll schemes.     

Departure delays,the pricing of congestion,and expansion proposals at Chicago O’Hare Airport

Chicago's O’Hare airport is extremely congested, especially in the late afternoon and early evening. The paper uses a publicly available database to estimate the relationship between the number of flights wishing to depart and the delays they experience. This relationship is used to calculate congestion fees that provide airlines with incentives to move some flights out of the peak period and to slightly alter the scheduled departure time of other flights to avoid the rush of departures that occur on the hour. The very high fees at certain times of day point to the benefits that can be obtained from current plans to expand and reconfigure the airport to reduce delays in both good and bad weather.     

Optimizing the service area and trip selection of an electric automated taxi system used for the last mile of train trips

We propose two integer programming models for optimizing an automated taxi (AT) system for last mile of train trips. Model S1: trip reservations are accepted or rejected by the operator according to the profit maximization; model S2: any reservation on a selected zone by the model must be satisfied. Models were applied to a case-study. Results indicate that fleet size influences the profitability of the taxi system: a fleet of 40 ATs is optimal in S1 and 60 ATs in S2. Having electric ATs constrains the system for small fleets because ATs will not have time for charging.     

Relevance of route and network profitability analysis for the network management process of network carriers

Route profitability analysis (RPA) and network profitability analysis (NPA) represent common approaches to measure the profitability of flights in the airline industry. Scientific discussion, however, lacks an in-depth understanding of their impact on the network management process or of their implementation throughout the industry and their design. Here we analyze RPA and NPA and evaluate their potential influence on network management-related decision making. We argue that both approaches vary in applicability and suitability according to airline business models (i.e. network carriers, point-to-point carriers). Furthermore, we present the findings of a study among the top 100 network carriers worldwide on the relevance of RPA and NPA. Results indicate a wide implementation of RPA and to a lesser degree of NPA. In addition, the sophistication of the profitability analysis and the application of the retrieved profitability data for planning purposes differ considerably between airlines.     

Emissions trading for international aviation—an estimation of the economic impact on selected European airlines

International aviation is responsible for between 2.5% and 3% of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions that are partly held responsible for climate change. International aviation is not subject to any regulatory framework for the limitation of these emissions. From an economic point of view, the introduction of an emissions trading scheme would be an appropriate instrument to limit these emissions. This paper outlines the possibilities on how aviation could be included in existing emissions trading schemes and gives an overview on the current political discussion. It continues with an empirical estimation of the impacts on operating costs and transport demand for low cost, full service, holiday and regional airlines taking Ryanair, Lufthansa, Condor and Air Dolomiti as examples, under three different design options for an emissions trading scheme. Finally, conclusions about the impacts on intra-European and worldwide airline competition are drawn.     

铁路局人力资源培训需求分析及对策

以某铁路局人力资源现状及培训情况为背景,利用缺口分析法预测未来企业培训需求,采用SPSS统计软件对该企业2004年—2015年人力资源培训开发需求进行预测和调整,并针对该铁路局人才需求提出建立新型的人才合作培训模式、多种途径培养人才、提高培训的质量、建立人才储备数据库等建议。     

Determinants of flight delays at East Asian airports from an airport,route and network perspective

Previous studies on determinants of flight delays have been limited to the attributes of departure and arrival airports and routes and experiences in North America and Europe. This research extends the existing discussions by considering a network perspective to explore East Asian airports. A total of 4611 routes among 318 airports in the second half of 2017 are analyzed using panel data regressions. Results show that the attributes of airports and routes linked with the departure and arrival airports of a flight are the essential determinants of flight delays in East Asia. However, the congestion internalization and hubness effect of departure and arrival airports suggested in previous research are not observed in this region. The associations of slot control levels and route attributes with delays are varying between airports inside and outside China and domestic and international routes. This research supplements a new perspective to understand the determinants of flight delays in existing literature and provides a rarely observed knowledge to encourage East Asian airport operators and carriers developing management strategies for minimizing flight delays.     

Global shark currency: the distribution,frequency, and economic value of shark ecotourism

Ecotourism represents a highly popularised activity which has exhibited global growth in recent years. In the present paper, we examine the distribution, frequency, and economic value of shark-based ecotourism operations worldwide. A total of 376 shark ecotour operations across 83 locations and 8 geographic regions were identified. Here we describe the global and regional scope of the industry; determine the species utilised in shark ecotourism activities; and examine the recreational usage values of sharks. Further, we conducted a case study of a shark tourism operation based in South Africa by analysing 12 years of demographical and economical data, revealing increasing trends in the total number of customers served and cost per trip over the sampling period. We also compare consumptive and non-consumptive values of shark resources and discuss the potential research and conservation implications of the industry to sharks worldwide.     

Evolution of the European network and implications for self-connection

Self-connection has become an appealing alternative for passengers in the European air transportation market, along with the remarkable growth of the low-cost carriers (LCCs) network over the last decade. As the development of self-connectivity is not directly designed in airports and airlines' growth strategies, this study aims to deeply understand the evolution of self-connectivity options in the intra-European market over time. By implementing a quickest travel time approach, we analyse the number of quickest connections and the share of indirect quickest paths that remained un-managed in years 2006 and 2016. Results document that, overall, travelling in Europe has become faster (−5.7 min of weighted average), while European airports' coverage, that is, airport pairs that can be directly or indirectly connected, decreased from 65% to 53%. The strong increase in LCCs' seat capacity (74%) did not translate into a similar growth of indirect connections options. Due to LCCs' offer redistribution and traditional carriers' partial retreatment from the European market to concentrate on intercontinental destinations, 1-transfer managed or un-managed options available to passengers in Europe dropped by 9.5%, and the share of 1-transfer quickest paths achievable by self-connecting flights increased by only 3pp, from 66% in 2006 to 69% in 2016.     

Location, economic potential and daily accessibility: an analysis of the accessibility impact of the high-speed line Madrid–Barcelona–French border

This paper evaluates the accessibility impact of the future Madrid–Barcelona–French border high-speed line. Accessibility impact of the new infrastructure is measured by means of three indicators: weighted average travel times, economic potential and daily accessibility. These indicators respond to different conceptualizations and offer complementary information about the issue accessibility. The results are quite different: very concentrated effects in the daily accessibility indicator, less concentrated in the economic potential one and more dispersal in the location indicator. The sign (polarizing/balancing) of these effects depend on the geographic scale: polarizing effects at the national level and balancing effects at both corridor and European levels are identified. A geographic information system (GIS) was used to carry out this study.     

向干部要管理以管理促安全--关于进一步深化安全基础建设的调查与思考

通过对兰州铁路发局安全基础建设的调研，发现安全工作下滑的关键在干部身上。因此，必须增强干部对安全工作的责任心，从思想上加强对安全工作的,明确干部的安全职责，构建监督体系，进行纵向，横向，反向监督，并加大考核力度，形成领导班子的凝聚力，更主要的是要加强业务知识学习，提高干部的安全管理水平。     

努力开创铁路科学发展新局面更好地为经济社会发展和人民群众服务

以科学发展观为指导,全面总结2011年铁路工作,深入剖析铁路发展面临的形势和需要把握的重大问题,部署2012年全路重点任务,动员全国铁路干部职工进一步统一思想,坚定信心,团结奋斗,努力开创铁路科学发展新局面,更好地为经济社会发展和人民群众服务,以优异成绩迎接党的十八大胜利召开。     

十五期间中国铁路基本建设投资需求与供给预测分析

铁路基本建设投资的大小,对于铁路的发展起着重要的作用。８０年代以来,中国铁路基本建设投严重不足,从而成为国民经济发展的瓶颈。文中利用一元线性回归模型和时间序列模型对“十五”期间铁路基本建设投资的需求与供给作出预测分析,并提出了相应的集资措施。     

国内外高速铁路旅客运输需求差异性分析

针对国内外高速铁路的社会发展状况和旅客群体属性等,从路网规模、经济发展、人口分布、客流结构等因素,分析高速铁路的客运需求特点。同时结合我国既有铁路客运特点,从客流细分、旅客支付能力和客流增长趋势等方面,对我国铁路客运专线的客流需求特点进行预测分析。     

Low-cost airlines,secondary airports,and state aid: An economic assessment of the Ryanair–Charleroi Airport agreement

This paper builds a vertical differentiation model to analyse the effects of subsidies, or lower aeronautical charges, for secondary airports on competition between low cost and full scheduled carriers. The Ryanair–Charleroi Airport agreement in Europe is used as an example and as a basis for the model. The main findings are that subsidization or lower airport charges benefit consumers and negatively affect incumbent airlines. However, they may be more affected by competition than by the subsidy. An empirical analysis provides a few insights on the influence of dominating airports in Ryanair fares. We conclude that this airline sets lower fares when flights depart from or arrive at dominated airports.     

The potential economic viability of using the Northern Sea Route (NSR) as an alternative route between Asia and Europe

The Arctic Ocean has been greatly affected by climate change. Future predications show an even more drastic reduction of the ice cap which will open new areas for the exploration of natural resources and maritime transportation. Shipping through the Arctic Ocean via the Northern Sea Route (NSR) could save about 40% of the sailing distance from Asia (Yokohama) to Europe (Rotterdam) compared to the traditional route via the Suez Canal. However, a 40% reduction in distance using the NSR does not mean a corresponding 40% in cost savings due to many factors, including: higher building costs for ice-classed ships, non-regularity and slower speeds, navigation difficulties and greater risks, as well as the need for extra ice breaker service.The main purpose of this study is to investigate the economic potential of using the NSR as an alternative route between Asia and Europe by taking all the main factors into consideration. It focuses on economic aspect of the NSR, therefore navigation/ environmental/cultural/legal issues are not discussed.The economic study is conducted by a case study in which 4300 TEU container ships (both non-ice classed and ice classed) are employed to make year round service. The annual profit gained from regular service by a non-ice-classed ship via the Suez Canal for the entire year is compared to the annual profit gained from an ice-classed ship taking the NSR during the navigable months and Suez Canal for the rest of the year. There are three factors that influence the NSR the most: the navigable time of the NSR, Russian NSR fees and bunker prices. To make this study flexible, three scenarios for navigable time, three scenarios for Russian NSR fees as well as three scenarios for bunker prices are proposed. These assumptions are all combined with each other and the profit under each condition is then calculated. The overall comparison is made in order to see under which conditions the NSR is competitive with the Suez Canal.     

Financial distress,survival network design strategies,and airline pricing: An event study of a merger between a bankrupt FSC and an LCC in Brazil

This paper develops an event study to investigate the airfare effects of the bankruptcy of a financially distressed full-service carrier (FSC) and its subsequent acquisition by a low-cost carrier (LCC) in Brazil. We account for the distressed carrier's survival network design strategies (SNDS) pursued during its reorganization—a suspected source of sample selection bias. Additionally, as rivals' pricing could be aimed at driving the distressed/bankrupt carrier out of the market, we treat the carrier's distress as endogenously determined with it. Our results do not uncover any survival pricing behavior stemming from SNDS, but reveal fiercer price competition from rivals in periods preceding both the distressed carrier's bankruptcy filing and acquisition. We also find evidence of enduring price competitiveness in the long run of the acquisition event, shedding light on the potential facilitating role played by bankruptcy protection regulations in keeping and sustaining market contestability after the bankruptcy-filing period.