Building an Economic Argumentation Model for Vessel Train

Vessel train has emerged as an innovative mode of transport organization and also as an intelligent ship-navigating technique. In this paper, we focus on the economic efficiency of vessel train for inland shipping and analyze the influence factors of economic efficiency. Based on the current situation of inland waterborne transport in China, we build an economic argumentation model for vessel train in inland waterways. Then, a case study is performed for the fairway along the Yangtze River trunk line that extends from Wuhan to Shanghai in the middle and lower reaches. The economic efficiency of the vessel train is estimated, and a sensitivity analysis is conducted for crew salary, identified as an important influence factor of economic efficiency. The results show that intelligent platooning cannot dramatically reduce the operating cost of vessel train under the current average crew salary in China. But as the crews’ salary continues to rise, vessel train is bound to have a bright prospect in the future.