Introduction
Freight rail is preferable to transporting goods by road to preserve the environment. Therefore, freight rail is more sustainable compared to having to use the road for cargo transport. In contemporary society, the issues of climate change or global warming have led to a shift in preference regarding cargo transport. In this case, rail transport is more sustainable as it emits less carbon into the environment leading to minimal pollution.
Therefore, addressing climate change and preserving the environment is one of the primary responsibilities that rail roads take very seriously. As a backbone of the economy of the United States for the last two hundred years, freight rail transport has evolved to provide advanced and efficient transportation solutions to consumers and businesses in America. Contemporary railroads continue to modernize their operations to meet the challenges of tomorrow, including enhancements to efficiency that increase efficiency and benefit the environment. Although there has been a radical shift in transporting goods from freight trains to tractor-trailers, it has adversely impacted the environment due to pollution making it unsustainable.
Environmental Impact
There would be more greenhouse gas emissions to the environment if all goods transported by freight train needed to switch to the tractor-trailer. In this case, there is a direct relationship between greenhouse gas emissions and fuel consumption (Burges et al., 2021). Research studies have demonstrated freight railroads account for minimal pollution in the United States. For example, such railroads contribute to 0.5 percent of the total greenhouse gas emissions in the United States (Cooper et al., 2019).
In addition, it contributes minimally to 1.9 percent of transportation-related emissions of greenhouse gases. Railroads are a holistic approach that ensures less carbon footprint, leading to less environmental pollution. The state-of-the-art locomotive technology leads to minimal emissions, which makes them the most conducive to the current environment. Freight trains leverage technology in their operations which minimizes their environmental effects (Monios & Bergqvist, 2019). In 2021, the US freight rail transport consumed 800 million fewer gallons of fuel. In addition, they discharged fewer million tons of carbon dioxide emissions than they would have if their fuel efficiencies had remained the same since the 2000s.
There would be a reduction in fuel efficiency if all the goods shifted from freight trains to tractor-trailers. In this regard, railroads are some of the most fuel or energy-efficient modes of transport. Freight rail is ahead of other modes of transport regarding reducing carbon footprint, particularly in the United States. Freight railroads in the US averagely move one ton of freight, approximately 700 kilometers per gallon of fuel (Cooper et al., 2019). Fuel efficiency in trains leads to enhanced operating practices that lead to a better and more sustainable environment. Rail components have minimal fuel usage as compared to cargo trucks. Such trains have improved aerodynamics and are light, making them consume a lot of fuel, power, or energy (Burges et al., 2021). The friction of their wheels is also minimal, which makes them utilize less horsepower for the train to be in motion. The anti-idling technologies in modern cargo trains make them more fuel-efficient than trucks.
The world would be unsustainable if all the cargo shifted from rail to road transport. For example, if 25 percent of the truck traffic moving approximately 1000 kilometers went by railroad instead, the yearly greenhouse gas emissions would dramatically reduce by an estimated 13.1 million tons (Monios & Bergqvist, 2019). If half the truck traffic is moving at least 1000 kilometers went by rail transport, the level of emissions of greenhouse gases would reduce by an estimated 26.2 million tons.
The current modern locomotives are very sustainable to use and environmentally friendly. In addition, improved train designs have enhanced the freight railroad’s carry. Zero or minimal emissions trains have transferring goods between places straightforward and efficient (Burges et al., 2021). Most modern trains are electric and use very little energy to be in motion. Some of the trains have rechargeable batteries that make fuel and energy efficiency a reality making the world more sustainable. Using trucks leads to burning fossil fuels, making the world unsustainable as the unrenewable resources can be depleted over time.
There would be more highway pollution and congestion if there were a shift from rail cargo to road transportation. Therefore, using rail transport to move cargo is one of the best ways to reduce harmful environmental emissions. In addition, it is also the best way through which congestion and noise pollution can be solved (Burges et al., 2021). When rail transport is used to transport cargo, it frees up space on the roads to be used by other vehicles leading to less vehicular traffic, which improves the environment. Railroads represent the best way to eliminate the enormous economic costs of highway congestion (Fridell et al., 2019). In the United States, highway congestion is a burden to the economy.
In 2017, such pollution in the US cost Americans an estimated 160 billion US dollars in wasted time, which is equivalent to 9 billion hours. In addition, such congestion also cost the US economy an estimated 3.3 billion gallons of fuel in 2017 (Monios & Bergqvist, 2019). Such a shift in cargo transportation would also result in intermittent cargo delays, lost productivity, and other costs that would slow down the pace of doing business. Tens of billions of dollars would be lost, leading to a severe beating of the economy (Kelle et al., 2019). A single train carries a lot of cargo that would be equivalent to what tens or hundreds of trucks would carry.
This means that there are significantly fewer trucks on the road, reducing the wear and tear on the roads and vehicle tires (Fridell et al., 2019). If road cargo is used more, there would be a minimal need and cost to construct new highways and buy new tires, leading to environmental cost-effectiveness (Cooper et al., 2019). Rail transportation is three or four times more fuel-efficient than road transport to ferry goods. On average, using train freight to transport cargo significantly reduces harmful air discharge by up to 75 percent.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there would be a negative environmental impact if all goods transported by freight train needed to switch to a tractor-trailer. Some of the adverse effects of this move would be the increase in emissions of harmful greenhouse gases, a reduction in fuel efficiency, and unsustainable life. In addition, rail transport for cargo is better than trucks as it leads to less pollution and congestion. When a train carries cargo, it frees up many trucks on the road, reducing congestion due to the reduced vehicular traffic. Highways and tires would also be less wear and tear, leading to minimal maintenance costs. Such cost reductions have a ripple effect on the economy, where monies are saved and freed to do other business for the economy.
References
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Cooper, J., Hawkes, A., & Balcombe, P. (2019). Life Cycle Environmental Impacts of natural gas drivetrains used in UK road freighting and impacts to UK emission targets. Science of The Total Environment, 674, 482–493. Web.
Fridell, E., Bäckström, S., & Stripple, H. (2019). Considering infrastructure when calculating emissions for freight transportation. Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, 69, 346–363. Web.
Kelle, P., Song, J., Jin, M., Schneider, H., & Claypool, C. (2019). Evaluation of operational and Environmental Sustainability Tradeoffs in Multimodal Freight Transportation Planning. International Journal of Production Economics, 209, 411–420. Web.
Monios, J., & Bergqvist, R. (2019). The transport geography of electric and autonomous vehicles in road freight networks. Journal of Transport Geography, 80, 102500. Web.