Accompanied combined transport is a form ofintermodal transport, which is the movement of goods in one and the same loading unit or road vehicle, using successively two or more modes of transport without handling the goods themselves in changing modes. More specifically, accompanied combined transport is one of the two types ofcombined transport, which is intermodal transport where the major part of the journey is by rail, inland waterways or sea, and any initial and/or final legs carried out by road are as short as possible.[1]
Cornbined transport is said to be "accompanied" when the driver of a complete freight carrying road vehicle is accompanying that vehicle, while it is being transported using other mode of transport.[2] This form ofintermodal freight transport is relatively common in Europe.
There are two basic types of rail service that may involve accompanied combined transport:
Accompanied road vehicles are carried in closed railway wagons through theChannel Tunnel betweenSangatte (Pas-de-Calais,France) andCheriton (Kent,United Kingdom).
TheDB AutoZug SyltShuttle transports road vehicles on railway wagons over theHindenburgdamm fromNiebüll toWesterland inSylt (or in the opposite direction).
The following car shuttle trains (Swiss German:Autoverlad) operate in Switzerland (mostly through tunnels):
Up until the opening of theGotthard Road Tunnel in 1980, there was also a car shuttle train through theGotthard Rail Tunnel betweenGöschenen undAirolo. Following the catastrophic fire in the road tunnel on 24 October 2001, this car shuttle train resumed operations for a few weeks.[3]
Rolling highways are mostly used for transit routes, e.g. through theAlps or between western and eastern Europe.
InAustria, rolling highways operate fromBayern viaTyrol toItaly or toEastern Europe.
There are several rolling highway routes inHungary, including an international route linking Kiskundorozsma, nearSzeged in Hungary, withWels in Austria.
A rolling highway operates betweenKolad inMaharashtra andVerna inGoa, with an extension toSurathkal inKarnataka. This service is more commonly known as RORO (roll-on-roll-off) inKonkan Railway.
InSwitzerland, there are rolling highways across the Alps on both theGotthard and theLötschberg -Simplon routes.
Between 1968 and 2000, severalhovercraft services transported accompanied road vehicles, including freight carrying vehicles, betweenCalais inFrance and eitherDover orRamsgate in theUnited Kingdom.