INTERMODAL GROWTH PLANS:
SPAIN AND SOUTH FLORIDA IN 2050
John W. Bradford
Master’s Program in Urban and Regional Planning
Florida Atlantic University
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
August 3, 2011
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I.
Introduction
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II.
Literature Review
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a. Transportation in Spain
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b. Transportation in South Florida
c. Future Trends
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III.
Research Problem
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IV.
Data
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V.
Methods .
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VI.
Airport and Seaport Totals
Madrid
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Barcelona .
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Miami
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Fort Lauderdale
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Results
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Discussion .
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Cargo Movers
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Electric Buses and Trucks .
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Speed Rail into City .
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Designated Passenger/Cargo Lines
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VII.
Conclusion
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VIII.
References
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
TABLES
T-1
T-2
T-3
T-4
Airport Passenger Traffic
Airport Cargo Traffic
Seaport Passenger Traffic
Seaport Cargo Traffic
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FIGURES
F-1
F-2
F-3
F-4
F-5
F-6
F-7
F-8
F-9
F-10
F-11
Madrid Barajas Airport Map
La Fortuna, Madrid .
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Barcelona Airport Map
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Port of Barcelona .
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Traffic Node in Barcelona .
Miami International Airport .
Miami Intermodal Center .
FLL Intermodal Idea .
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Cargo Mover .
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Electric Bus in Europe
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Parallel Railway Tracks
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
1.0
INTRODUCTION
Transportation planners in the United States and Europe have long grappled with
the increasing numbers of passengers and amounts of cargo processed through major
cities via car, truck, rail, ship, and plane. People and freight move through seaports,
airports, and railway stations every day and require interconnectors from one mode of
travel to another in the form of intermodal centers. An example of such would be
London Stansted Airport, which was designed in the 1990s to process freight and
expedite passenger travel from plane to ship or rail. However, because of the distance
of Stansted from downtown London, the center never grew to considerable size.
The importance of intermodal centers in future travel is underscored by a number
of facts. First, the populations of both the United States and Europe are expanding just
as international passenger and freight traffic has increased since the 1980s. In order to
process freight and provide efficient passenger access to city centers, different transport
vehicles must be used in replacement of those which require the use of carbon fuels
such as oil: ships, planes, trucks, and buses. Second, with the much dreaded decline in
availability of such fuels in the year 2050, it can be theorized that travel will become
more and more expensive. This expense must be reduced somehow to make
transportation possible; otherwise, intercity movement will come to a halt. Third, travel
between critical locations such as industrial and employment centers must be preserved
so that cities do not die on the vine. People must be able to get to work.
Therefore, today’s planners must develop new ideas and revisit old ideas
wherein intermodal centers will advance transportation as efficiently and as
inexpensively as possible. Ideas on this topic have been suggested in the past, such as
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
the implementation of cargo movers and people movers. However, wherever costs are
concerned, such as that of the movement of cargo underground, many ideas have been
abandoned in the name of the dollar or the euro. Gasoline-powered vehicles presently
offer cheaper alternatives to freight and passenger travel than drastic measures, such
as putting all methods of travel on electric cable or hybrid engine. Nonetheless,
intermodal centers have proven useful and will be part of the equation for success when
oil reserves are depleted in 2050.
This research paper addresses the issue of new ideas versus old ideas involving
intermodal centers and compares two regions in Spain—Madrid and Barcelona—with
two in South Florida—Miami and Fort Lauderdale—in order to illustrate how far
behind—or sometimes, how far ahead—many regions are today in preparation for 2050.
The purpose of this paper is to show where success and room for improvement exist in
designing intermodal centers for the year 2050.
The paper is divided into seven sections: Introduction, Literature Review,
Problem Statement, Data, Methods, Results, and Conclusion. Research from scholarly
journals and interviews with professors in Spain and South Florida were included in this
study. Additionally, airport and seaport statistics were collected from Internet sources.
Finally, observations in Spain and South Florida were conducted during a Planning
Abroad trip on behalf of the Master’s Program in Urban and Regional Planning at
Florida Atlantic University in May of 2011. This information yielded the significant
findings discussed in “Results” and provided the relevant discussion in the “Conclusion”
section at the end of the paper.
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
2.0
LITERATURE REVIEW
Transportation in Spain and South Florida is similar in that both regions depend
on oil as a means of providing energy for truck-lifts, planes, and ships to function.
Moreover, these methods of transport require that cities such as Madrid, Barcelona,
Miami, and Fort Lauderdale utilize intermodal connectivity to move people and freight in
and out of the city, in that a plane cannot land on top of buildings in a downtown area,
and train networks cannot go everywhere a bus or subway system may go. Ultimately,
the problem rests with construction of efficient and effective intermodal centers, for the
cost of fuel precludes wasteful expense, such as relying on taxi service to get from
airport to seaport, or on trucking freight from port to outlying areas where a train service
would work more efficiently.
Planners have tried to develop intermodal centers at airports, seaports, and
downtown business centers as efficiently as possible. There are a number of
transportation options available to planners, and regrettably, most of them require oil as
their main source of fuel and are extremely expensive. These options include but are
not limited to: trucks, airplanes, ships, railway, bus, and car. However, it should be
noted that measures have been taken to create more electric rail service. For instance,
Spain has spent billions of Euros to develop an all-electric passenger speed train
system (AVE) that connects cities like Barcelona and Madrid with every major city in
Spain on the national railway system known as RENFE. Even so, Spain still depends on
carbon fuels to provide its electricity and to operate local trains not on the AVE system.
These attempts to improve Spanish rail have not gone unnoticed, and in South Florida,
ideas for a bullet train between Miami and Orlando have been discussed.
5
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
Notwithstanding, these issues and the rising cost of fuel have generated much
discussion in scholarly literature and among professors and professionals in Spain and
the United States concerning the future of intermodal centers and the fate of various
forms of travel which depend on carbon fuels. Most importantly, there is a definite date
and cause for concern—the year 2050—whereupon world oil depletion will be felt the
hardest by everyone. In this section, transportation issues in Spain and South Florida
are discussed and followed by an analysis of the literature on future impacts of world oil
depletion on intermodal centers in the years to come.
2.1
Transportation in Spain
The primary focus of current literature points to the laws of supply and demand.
In other words, if people still want to travel, they will pay the higher costs of traveling by
train or car even when the price of gasoline reaches, for instance, twenty dollars a liter.
However, it is fair to say that many will object to the high price of transportation and may
look into less expensive and more efficient means of traveling, such as taking the metro
or an electric bus from a train, boat, or airplane trip. This concept would necessitate
creating as many efficient intermodal centers as possible. For instance, one might take
a plane to a train at one intermodal center, then a train to a bus at another, and so on
until one arrives at his or her destination.
A number of professionals and scholars agree with this supposition. Gimeno and
Vila (2007) and Matas (2004) concur that public transportation—and thereby the use of
intermodal centers—is a way of life for most Spaniards. Novales, Orro, and Bugarin
(2003) have even identified using suburban rail systems on national railway lines
(RENFE) as a means of further expanding public transportation into the far-reaching
6
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
enclaves of Madrid. This practice of reusing existing transportation lines to expand
another service could give rise to other services such as the movement of freight
underground using extant Metro lines. In other words, the Spanish are resilient and
eager to try most things public.
However, some Spaniards have discovered the luxury of driving their car to work
and are not eager to give it up. As Asensio (2002) discusses of Barcelona’s commuters,
many Spaniards now see the car as a necessity. Spanish autopistas, the concrete maze
of super highways which crisscross the nation, have been constructed everywhere—
even through mountains—for the myriad cars and trucks that now populate the nation.
Even though Metro service reaches into the suburbs of Barcelona, many residents
prefer driving. Notwithstanding, as Asensio suggests in his conclusion, suburbanization
and the price of gasoline may preclude the use of the car or the truck over mass transit.
Gimeno and Vila (2007) and Matas (2004) would probably agree.
More importantly, airports and seaports depend greatly on mass transit and use
intermodal centers. Rebollo and Baidal (2009) and Soliño and Vassalo (2009) would
say that market drivers for Spanish airports—i.e., tourism and business travel—point
towards low-cost air transport with high use of public transportation in the city to get to
and from the airport. Soliño and Vassalo would underscore the importance of using both
public and private sectors to develop subway systems with airport intermodal centers
and to promote competition in order to arrive at a fair cost. Once again, this argument is
largely dependent upon the future cost of oil and airplane travel, and if low-cost air
transport is not low enough, there will be fewer travelers with less need for airport
intermodal centers. Possibly, train or ship service may be more popular.
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
2.2
Transportation in the South Florida
On the other hand, Miami and Fort Lauderdale are typical American cities with
insufficient mass transit. The normal wait for a public bus is one hour, and until the
creation of Tri-Rail, there was no north-south rail service to either the Miami airport or
the Fort Lauderdale airport. The most common way to travel in and around South
Florida is by car, such as a taxi or one’s own personal vehicle, or else by van or
limousine service, such as a jitney or Super Shuttle. Metrorail is also an option if one
wishes to travel by elevated train between Hialeah and Kendall via Downtown Miami,
but the route is not nearly as well-traveled as it could be if the service went to the
seaport or the airport.
Presently, airport to downtown travel in South Florida is rather expensive. To get
to the city center would cost you forty dollars for the Miami to downtown trip or twenty
dollars for the Fort Lauderdale to downtown trip. South Floridians ordinarily prefer to
hitch a ride with a friend or catch a taxi to get from the suburbs to the airport.
Nonetheless, there is currently no speed train from the airport to the downtown city
center which would be cost effective and feasible for South Florida’s millions of visitors
who come to Florida’s beaches, not to mention the regular business travelers who live
in the suburbs of Miami or Fort Lauderdale who need access to the airport.
It should be no surprise that the literature on United States intermodal centers
indicates that Americans lag behind the Europeans. Slack (1990) observed that the
United States and Canada first began to construct freight intermodal centers in the
1980s because of few inland load centers. Europe had already constructed such
intermodal centers while America struggled with its outmoded systems of transport.
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
Granted that most airports and seaports have trucking and sometimes railway access,
people in Miami and Fort Lauderdale, however, do not have easy access to
transportation options such as trams or metro systems. Consequently, intermodal
center development in cities like Miami and Fort Lauderdale did not achieve significance
until the turn of the century (Slack, 1990).
The recent growth of intermodal centers in coastal cities such as Miami and Fort
Lauderdale can be attributed to several factors. Bitzan and Keeler (2010) theorize that
the need to conserve energy in these locations might have precipitated intermodal traffic
and has thereby led to intermodal centers near seaports, airports, and rail depots.
However, Hayuth (1991) believes differently that business activity could have
precipitated many of today’s American intermodal centers. Prosperi (2008; p.2) might
agree with Hayuth (1991) that airports like Miami offer “localized externalities of financial
and technical factors” that generate employment centers, which can in turn lead to
intermodal centers, especially for freight through transshipment and other activities.
These factors have also precipitated plans for airport passenger intermodal centers,
such as the one under construction at Miami International Airport, and have created an
important and practical purpose for South Florida intermodal centers in general.
2.3
Future Trends
There are a number of factors which will play crucial roles in future development
of intermodal centers. Some relevant ideas—such as those of Hayuth (1991) and
Prosperi (2008)—stress the importance of business centers as a foundation for
intermodality. As the population increases in cities like Barcelona, Madrid, Miami, and
Fort Lauderdale, so may the need for more freight and passenger intermodal centers—
9
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
or in the cases of Miami and Fort Lauderdale, so will the need to catch up with Europe.
Through urban development studies, cities like Madrid are already calculating new
loads for their transportation networks which can, in effect, produce more and better
designed intermodal centers (Gospodini, 2005). However, it should be said that
scholars including Hayuth (1991) and Gospodini (2005) have articulated the need for
such centers but have not factored in the cost of transportation in 2050.
The most critical factor in developing intermodal centers in the future lies in the
fate of the world’s supply of oil. Without enough petroleum-based products, many
services around the globe may come to a halt. Ahlbrandt (2002; p.1092) with his work
involving the United States Geological Survey calculates that the world can expect
potential oil shortfalls as early as 2036-2040 with natural gas depletion sometime during
2050-2060. In other words, ships, airplanes, trucks, and trains will have to give way to
other modes of transport that do not require petroleum-based products—such as
electric trains that depend on alternative fuels, such as nuclear energy-based electricity.
Additionally, the world may find ways to conserve what oil is left while researching the
feasibility of hybrid engines and electric motors. These possibilities open a door for
travel past 2050 and may shed light on the usefulness of intermodal centers.
More importantly, however, the uncertain future of oil hastens the need for more
public transport and better-developed intermodal centers. Stone and Mees (2010) opine
that these ideas—including more walking, cycling, and electric vehicles—will ultimately
take the forefront in a post-petroleum world. Already some nations such as Japan and
those in Europe have embraced intermodal centers where passengers can change from
train to metro to electric bus without ever using a mode of transport that requires oil.
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
Bitzan and Keeler (2010; p.1) cite the growth of “rail freight” which cuts down on fuel
consumption and reduces carbon emissions. Stone and Mees (2010) and Bitzan and
Keeler (2010) would definitely agree that intermodality is a probable solution for 2050.
Clearly, electric trains, public transport, and intermodal centers form part of the solution
to the depletion of world oil resources in 2050.
There is one additional factor that ties in with this solution. Climate change will
necessitate creating and utilizing “clean fuels,” as MacCracken (2009) writes, which will
stop the accumulation of carbon in the earth’s atmosphere from the combustion of coal,
oil, and natural gas. In agreement with MacCracken, Giglio (2010; p.28) underscores
the importance of President Obama’s goals to reduce substantially greenhouse gases
(GHG) “by eighty percent in 2050.” Without this reduction, the air we breathe will
obviously become scarcer, and the overall cost to society will be even higher.
Therefore, more integrated transportation—such as intermodal centers—that use “clean
energy,” as MacCracken (2009) describes, should be developed in the years to come.
Without creating more efficient forms of travel with intermodality, the world will not be
prepared for global oil depletion in 2050.
The roles these preceding arguments play in South Floridian and Spanish
transportation are quite significant. For instance, Miami and Fort Lauderdale already
suffer from lack of walkability—something Stone and Mees (2010) would find
quintessential for the year 2050. Moreover, world oil depletion and GHG hasten the
need for efficient intermodal centers that connect a fast, long-range mode of transport,
such as high speed rail, with a short-range mode of transport, such as a metro system
(MacCracken, 2009). Without employing such science, transportation is at a loss.
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
3.0
RESEARCH PROBLEM
Intermodal centers are ubiquitous and used every day by people traveling to and
from work or beyond the immediate to places for vacation or business. However, people
often take these centers and transportation for granted. As an example, what price
would people put on their transportation if the economy turned sharply downward?
People’s travel options would be limited considerably if the cost to travel and to use
these intermodal centers were well over a certain amount—for instance, using 2011
European currency, fifty Euros to travel by metro to the airport and then 5,000 Euros for
a one-way ticket between Madrid and Barcelona. Such a premise on a global level
would be catastrophic for transportation all over—not just for domestic travel, but
international travel as well.
Yet how will people get about from place to place in 2050 if these fares and
calculations were the same as they are now or even higher? This situation lends itself to
worry that today’s modes of transportation are unacceptable because of world oil
depletion and that our intermodal centers may not be ready for different and more
effective, more efficient means of travel. What are the options currently available? What
do intermodal centers in Spain and South Florida have to offer in the year 2011 in
comparison with the demands for travel in 2050? Are we ready for the intermodal center
of the future, or are we still lagging behind everyone else in the world?
Intermodal centers bear significant value to today’s transportation networks and
should continue to do so in 2050. For instance, how easy is it for a person who lives on
the other side of town and who is carrying luggage to reach the airport as efficiently and
economically as possible? This idea would probably require the use of a bus or subway
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
and then an airplane when he or she arrives at the airport. Without an intermodal center
in between stops, the person would have to carry the luggage and walk from one stop to
the next. Intermodal centers facilitate travel ubiquitously and usually provide an
inexpensive method of travel, such as connections for mass transit. As discussed in the
preceding paragraphs, this travel may be ideal—especially in the year 2050 when the
price of oil may preclude the ease of using one’s car for virtually all trips.
As explained in the beginning of this paper, the focus of this research is on what
cities in South Florida and Spain have accomplished in the way of constructing
intermodal centers and how their advancements address, or fail to address, the
demands of future travel. How do air travel, cruise ships, railway, and urban mass
transit—such as bus, tram, and metro—interconnect in cities that number in the millions
of inhabitants? Which of these cities—Madrid, Barcelona, Miami, and Fort Lauderdale—
is faring better than the others, and what are they doing right? If any such are failing,
then what are they doing wrong?
Therefore, a non-statistically based research question is posed for the purpose of
this paper. Given data on the most significant intermodal centers in locations such as
airports, seaports, and downtown business areas, how do the two regions—Spain and
South Florida—compare with one another in overall achievement of a common goal to
facilitate travel for each respective municipality in terms of freight or passenger traffic?
The answer to this question comes in the form of observations and local knowledge of
Miami and Fort Lauderdale in addition to observations through travel to Madrid and
Barcelona in conjunction with Florida Atlantic University’s Planning Abroad in Spain
Program from May 6th through May 16th of 2011.
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4.0
DATA
The information used for this comparative analysis comes chiefly from
observations, interviews with professors, and data from professionals in each of the four
cities in this study: Madrid, Barcelona, Miami, and Fort Lauderdale. In the case of the
airport and seaport statistics obtained for comparative analysis below, data was
collected from relevant websites on the Internet. It should be noted that for several
instances as it were with Madrid and Barcelona, there were no obtainable numbers for
calendar year 2010. Therefore, only 2005 through 2009 airport and seaport data were
used for comparison.
With respect to key observations in Madrid, information was gathered from
personal visits by the researcher in addition to knowledge offered by Ambrosio AguadoBonet in the Urbanismo y Vivienda Department of the Ayuntamiento de Madrid.
Additional knowledge came from Professor Diego Martín Gil at the Polytechnic
University of Madrid and Mark Dwyer of the Fundación Metrópoli. For those cases in
which actual words or ideas are quoted, please refer to the text and citations in
“Methodology” and “References.”
Similarly, data on intermodal centers in Barcelona was obtained from personal
observations within the city in addition to interviews with Xavier Roselló, Assistant
Technical Director of the Autoritat del Transport Metropolità in Barcelona, and with
Francesc Magrinyà Torner, Professor of Urbanism within the Department of
Transportation Infrastructure at the Polytechnic University of Catalunya. For words or
ideas quoted from either of these two contacts, please refer to the text and citations in
“Methodology” and “References.”
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
Information on Miami, Florida comes from personal knowledge of the researcher
and studies at Florida Atlantic University (FAU). Actual visits to the airport and the
adjacent intermodal center were performed in May of 2011 and previously in May of
2010 in a course called “International Planning Design Studio” under the auspices of the
professors at FAU and Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in Germany. Additionally,
the researcher visited the Port of Miami in travel during the months of December of
2009 and January of 2010.
Similarly, knowledge on Fort Lauderdale, Florida comes from personal
knowledge of the researcher and related studies at FAU. Visits to the Miami
International Airport in 2010 and again in 2011 were coupled with a visit to Port
Everglades during the summer of 2009 and the Port of Miami in the fall of 2008.
Additional information was obtained from Dan Bartholomew at the Fort LauderdaleHollywood International Airport and from the course on intermodal design at Fort
Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport called “International Planning Design Studio”
during May of 2010 and taught by professors at FAU and KIT.
The information and thoughts gleaned from these sources lead to the unique
ideas debated at the end of the paper. Conversations with professors and professionals
alike inspired new thought on the developing of separate cargo and passenger traffic
lanes in railway travel, on the use of high-speed rail to link airports and seaports, on the
introduction of a high-speed connector of mass transit from the airport to the downtown
business areas, and on the revisiting of old designs for cargo movers that use
underground metro lines. The data referenced herein is included for analysis in the
following section on “Methods” and discussed accordingly in “Results.”
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
5.0
METHODS
The aforementioned data were collected and analyzed using simple comparison
of passenger and freight totals for the four cities used in this study in addition to point by
point comparison of unique qualities of various cities, such as the offering of seaport to
airport connections or express train from either port into the downtown city center.
These findings are presented in this section and show how Spain and South Florida
vary from point to point concerning overall development of intermodal centers in key
locations throughout each respective region. Furthermore, the significance of rail, bus,
metro, tram, airplane, and ship is weighed in, for each mode of transport was found to
have a significant impact on the service potential of an intermodal center.
Spain and South Florida have developed intermodal centers near airports and
seaports which to some degree embrace public transportation. The most common form
of public transportation at either site is rail service—national railways (RENFE) in Spain
and the Florida East Coast Railway (FEC) which runs parallel to the CSX Railway
(CSX) in South Florida. Without rail service, airports and seaports would not be able to
transship large bulk cargo over long distances inasmuch as trucking for this purpose
can be very expensive, especially in Spain where fuel costs are much higher in
comparison to those in the States.
5.1
Airport and Seaport Totals
The volume of airport passenger and cargo traffic for the cities included in this
study indicates that the airports are still growing. See Tables 1 and 2 below for
passenger and cargo statistics on each city. For instance, passenger traffic in Madrid,
Barcelona, Miami, and Fort Lauderdale grew since 2005 but leveled off because of the
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
economy up until 2009. However, unlike Madrid Barajas Airport (MAD), which
maintained a level amount of cargo tonnage from 2005 to 2009, Barcelona (BCN) grew
at a steady rate from 2005 to 2008. It should be noted that Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood
International Airport (FLL) decreased in annual cargo traffic for 2005 through 2009 while
Miami International Airport (MIA) fluctuated from 2005 until 2008 with a sharp decline in
2009, most likely associated with the recession of that year. This data suggests that all
four airports are relatively vibrant with regard to passenger and cargo traffic for the
period from 2005 to 2009.
TABLE 1 – Passenger Traffic by Airport (Millions of Passengers)
AIRPORT
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
Madrid
42.1
45.8
52.1
50.8
48.4
Barcelona
27.2
30.0
32.9
30.2
27.3
Miami
31.0
32.5
33.7
34.0
33.9
Ft Lauderdale
11.4
10.7
11.1
11.6
10.5
SOURCES: Wikipedia.com, Miami-airport.com, and broward.org.
TABLE 2 – Cargo Traffic by Airport (Tons)
AIRPORT
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
Madrid
333,138
325,702
325,201
329,187
302,863
Barcelona
90,446
93,404
96,770
104,329
a
1,894,241
1,975,764
2,076,898
1,944,879
1,676,515
179,159
165,186
155,077
137,826
102,149
Miami
Ft Lauderdale
aData
not available for this year.
SOURCES: Wikipedia.com, Miami-airport.com, and broward.org.
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
On the other hand, seaport data shows that Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and
Barcelona are about the same from year to year, with the exception of Miami cargo,
which has been in decline since 2005. See Tables 3 and 4 below for more detail.
Although the Port of Barcelona has not posted passenger traffic numbers on-line as of
June 8, 2011, the figures computed for 2010 of 3.4 million passengers indicate that the
port is competitive with those of Miami and Fort Lauderdale (Port Everglades).
Furthermore, this data reveals consistency in the face of economic downturn, or in the
case of Barcelona, the addition of new security procedures at the port.
TABLE 3 – Passenger Traffic by Seaport (Millions of Passengers)
SEAPORT
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
--
--
--
--
--
Miami
3.61
3.73
3.80
4.14
4.11
Ft Lauderdale
3.80
3.24
3.41
3.23
3.14
Barcelonaa
a
Barcelona passenger statistics not available.
SOURCES: portdebarcelona.es, miamidade.gov/portofmiami, and porteverglades.net.
TABLE 4 – Cargo Traffic by Seaport (Tons)
SEAPORT
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
Barcelona
3,276,014
3,307,841
3,622,328
3,090,696a
3,206,550
Miami
9,473,852
8,654,371
7,835,132
7,429,963
6,831,496
Ft Lauderdale
5,076,403
5,688,442
6,060,149
6,584,747
5,204,103
aNew
customs and security procedures in place.
SOURCES: portdebarcelona.es, miamidade.gov/portofmiami, and porteverglades.net.
18
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What the seaport and airport data above indicates is that there is a demand for
intermodal activity in all places. Whether cargo must be unloaded by forklift from train to
ship, or whether passengers need transportation from plane to bus or even cruise ship,
it is clear by sheer volume of cargo and numbers of people that time, cost, and space
can be saved through intermodal centers in any of these locations. As the model cities
included in this study—Madrid, Barcelona, Miami, and Fort Lauderdale—illustrate in this
section, there is tremendous potential for the improvement of transportation in large
business centers including airports, seaports, and downtown locations.
As the data implies with regard to the extrinsic value of intermodal centers,
people use these centers all the time when traveling far distances. Both airport and
seaport intermodal centers would be used if one could not afford to park a car at the
parking lot; take a taxi, jitney, or limousine service; hitch a ride with a friend; or walk or
bicycle to the location. While it is clear that airports and seaports have maintained a
steady level of passenger traffic over the last five to six years, the significance of
intermodal centers in these locations has probably risen, too.
Likewise, cargo intermodal centers have acquired importance through steady
traffic over the years at the four airports and three seaports included in this survey.
Moreover, this traffic validates the need for freight rail and truck service to these
locations inasmuch as cargo must be moved lest it stand by idly on the side next to an
airplane or a ship berth waiting to be loaded on another vessel. Nonetheless, intermodal
centers are quintessential for transshipment and processing, and without a crane or a
forklift to transport or move the freight, one would have only a plane and a train, or a
ship and a train. It takes the whole intermodal center to make the process viable.
19
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5.2
Madrid
Capital of Spain and a city of well over six million, Madrid is located in the center
of the country and does not possess a seaport. It features three significant intermodal
centers to note, and they are the railway stations of Atocha and Chamartín followed by
the airport center at Barajas. The Atocha and Chamartín railway stations are both
served by the Metro, RENFE, and the public (EMT) and private buses. According to
information from RENFE, only passengers travel through these two principal railway
stations. Cargo is shipped separately via railway service to other centers inside and
outside of Madrid. The most common form of inter- and intra-city shipping is that of
gasoline-consuming trucks which must compete with local city traffic. The most popular
hours for truck deliveries in Madrid are between one and five in the morning.
Similarly, Madrid’s airport depends heavily on trucks to distribute freight around
the city and into the suburbs. There is a train depot not too far away from the airport;
however, for freight to reach the train from the airport’s cargo centers requires smaller
vehicles to provide the transfer. Diesel-powered forklifts and smaller ramp vehicles are
also used in the process of moving cargo, which becomes considerably expensive when
one considers the price of oil in most European countries. Electric ramp vehicles have
been proposed but are not yet completely implemented since May of 2011.
However, as the statistics in Section 5.1 above indicate, the Madrid Barajas
Airport caters less to freight processing and transshipment and more so to passenger
traffic and commercial air service. The passenger intermodal center offers a number of
amenities that are typical of the modern aerotropolis, but the pinnacle is the interchange
of air travel with the Metro, taxis, and public and private bus systems. There is even a
20
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
separate Metro stop for Terminals 1, 2, 3, and 4. Passengers can literally walk from a
flight and board a Metro train in very little time. See Figure 1 below for a diagram of the
Barajas airport.
“North” appears to the left side of this map.
Blue marks the runways and taxiways.
Yellow marks the intermodal center.
Orange marks the airport terminals.
Pink marks the cargo centers.
SOURCE: http://www.aena-aeropuertos.es/cartografia
Figure 1: Madrid Barajas Airport Map
Madrid’s intermodal centers like Barajas are fast, clean, and efficient for present
day purposes. However, how effective will they be in 2050? Atocha and Chamartín offer
electric railway service from Metro to RENFE up above and may one day connect with
electric buses should the Ayuntamiento de Madrid decide one day to put electric cable
all over Madrid for use with trams and electric buses. At the present moment, there is no
discussion of such plans. In the meantime, the cost to use an intermodal center is free
21
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
and is kept operational by taxes and user fees with one of the transportation systems.
This arrangement works fine for the train stations and for Barajas, which is a model for
airport efficiency and esthetics as well. For instance, Barajas was constructed with
“green building” and features glass, elevators for the handicapped, and information
centers that guide visitors to one of the local services: private or public bus, Metro, or
taxicabs into the city. With the exception of planes, buses, and taxicabs, Madrid’s
intermodal centers use “clean energy” and are ready for oil depletion in 2050.
On the other hand, it should be mentioned that Madrid’s intermodal centers are
lacking in many capacities. First, there is no real train service on RENFE at the airport
per se. Passengers have to take the Metro from Barajas and change lines twice in order
to reach one of the nearest railway stations. Second, there is no non-stop Metro line
from the airport to the city center, to either the business center like the Castellana or
perhaps to the heart of Madrid near the Puerta de Sol. How are business travelers to
get there in a hurry? Third, the airport lacks a veritable “cargo city” like that of Miami
which would facilitate the distribution of large amounts of cargo. One would waste much
fuel on this operation this way. Fourth, diesel-powered tugs and forklifts at the small
cargo center at Barajas probably contribute as much GHG as the trucks that deliver the
cargo. Barajas needs a cargo intermodal center that includes rail. Fifth, freight must
come into the airport—located in the northeast part of the City—from very far away,
usually the southwest regions of the City like La Fortuna. Clearly, this operation is
inefficient and wasteful of precious gasoline. See Figure 2 on the next page for a
perspective of La Fortuna wherein industry in Southwest Madrid is apparent and
wherefrom goods must be shipped to the airport generally by truck.
22
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
Figure 2: View of La Fortuna - SW Madrid, Spain
Granted that trucks can usually ferry goods to railway depots, it is clear, however,
that Madrid was not designed with dynamic railway systems, easy access to loading
points, and overall transportation efficiency in mind. For instance, much of Madrid’s
roadways meanders over hills and runs into cul-de-sacs, plazas, and glorietas, which
are very beautiful but difficult to circumnavigate during rush hour. Additionally, train
traffic must go underground since much of Madrid is already built from the ground up,
and although it would seem easy to combine Metro and RENFE lines for freight traffic,
the notion is impractical because of the considerable cost to upgrade the tracks and
move freight vertically from the surface to the train down below and vice versa.
Ostensibly, Madrid is ahead of some cities with regard to intermodal centers—
such as the one at the Barajas airport and the train stations located in the north
(Chamartín) and the south (Atocha). On the other hand, Madrid is still struggling to
23
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
modernize a 500 year-old city with roadways that are difficult to navigate and pose
innumerable traffic problems. If Madrid can manage to integrate different modes of
transport using rail service and electric vehicles, the City could pave the way for
success with regard to intermodal centers in the year 2050. As for now, Madrid is still
dependent on fuel-guzzling vehicles like the truck and trying to figure out the day to day
load specifications for Metro and bus routes to provide the most effective system
possible for a city teeming with millions of public transportation users.
5.3
Barcelona
Second largest city in Spain and by far the most culturally-enriched, Barcelona
basks in popularity as a popular beach mecca and cultural center. The City has offered
such amenities as an Olympic village and an artist’s gathering point for Miró, Gaudí, and
Picasso. The city has also benefited from a large metro network coupled with trams,
trains, and buses that speed Barcelona’s denizens from the suburbs on the other side of
the mountains into the downtown area. Moreover, the city is uniquely compact with the
airport called El Prat de LLobregat (BCN), the seaport, and the major business center
all lined up along the Mediterranean coast from west to east respectively.
Barcelona’s railway system is very efficient. According to RENFE, the main
railway station known as Sants provides passenger service aboard AVE trains that use
electric cables that crisscross across Spain and local service aboard diesel locomotives.
Similarly, private train service is also available and connects the city with the
surrounding areas, such as Sitges and Montserrat. Commuters travel great distances in
European terms to get from the far north into downtown Barcelona. Although many
commuters prefer their cars, as discussed in the literature review, and many travel
24
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
through the mountain tunnels that connect the suburbs to the city’s downtown region,
most Barcelonans take a series of train, Metro, or tram trips to get to work in the
business districts such as Eixample or Ciutat Vella.
Cargo is generally shipped separately via train to other centers outside of
Barcelona, while mixed electric and diesel service is provided for the seaport and airport
intermodal centers. The most common form of inter- and intra-city shipping is still that of
gasoline-consuming trucks which must compete with local city traffic and which pick up
most loads from the seaport center. Truck delivery hours in Barcelona are reserved
between one and five in the morning, and trucks can sometimes be seen early in the
morning on pedestrian streets, approved so by the City, using removable stanchions.
Thus, the freight network of Barcelona depends mostly on electric trains and gasconsuming trucks.
Barcelona’s airport is relatively small compared to Barajas (MAD) or Miami (MIA).
As one can see from Figure 3 on the next page, Barcelona’s airport is relatively
compact with a small cargo processing center and only three terminals. The subway line
extends directly into the city, but with a series of stops. Most Barcelonans prefer public
transportation to taxi-rides to the airport. Presently, there are no steps in place to
expedite the shipment and delivery of cargo underground, which means freight must be
trucked into town or transferred at the railway the runs through the middle of Barcelona,
separating the airport from the seaport and the heart of the city. Furthermore,
transshipment exists locally at the airport through trucks or inter-regionally via train
service, but it does not flourish as it would in larger cities like Madrid or Miami. Much like
Madrid’s airport, Barcelona airport caters to passenger traffic more so than freight.
25
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
“North” appears on the top part of this map.
Blue marks the runways and taxiways.
Yellow marks the intermodal center.
Orange marks the airport terminals.
Pink marks the cargo centers.
SOURCE: http://www.aena-aeropuertos.es/cartografia
Figure 3: Barcelona Airport Map
The Port of Barcelona features both cruise ship and cargo traffic. Granted that
Barcelona may not be as large as the Port of Miami, nevertheless, the port does
process a considerable amount of cargo through use of cranes, forklifts, trucks, and
railway service. The seaport view from Montjuïc in Figure 4 on the next page shows a
typical day’s activity in Barcelona as domestic and international cargo is processed and
distributed in an intermodal shipyard situated on the Mediterranean coastline.
Passengers can also board cruise ships through any of the port’s four terminals located
near Barcelona’s downtown center, known as Ciutat Vella. Although Metro and bus
service exists to the seaport, many people would recommend taking a taxi if coming
from the airport with a number of suitcases.
26
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
Figure 4: Port of Barcelona from Montjuïc
Barcelona’s intermodal centers at Sants, the airport, and the seaport provide
excellent interconnectivity and facilitate travel to all points within the city and those
without such as the suburbs, the rest of Spain, and even France. Presently, intermodal
access does not cost anything, and Metro and bus travel is nominal compared to
taxicab or private car. The City of Barcelona is preparing for 2050 and recently
introduced a tram service across town. The fact that RENFE uses electricity to operate
its trains makes intermodal centers like the intermodal center at Sants truly unique.
Without these intermodal centers, it would be difficult to reach the airport or the seaport
if one lived in the suburbs on the other side of the mountain range, or if one lived all the
way east of the city where mass transit would be hard to come by. While air and sea
travel in this region may be very expensive in 2050, Barcelona is at least trying to bridge
the connection points using railway, mass transit, and intermodal centers as a way of
the future to replace the costly truck and private car.
27
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
However, as much as Barcelona may have reason to boast its magnificent
transportation accomplishments, there are certain drawbacks to their passenger and
cargo systems. For instance, there is no subway or speed rail connecting the airport to
the seaport, a feature which many travelers may find useful in contrast to a forty dollar
taxi ride. Second, Barcelona needs a non-stop subway service from the city center to its
two main ports, especially the airport. Business travelers need this kind of service
especially since they may be one of the few people who could afford air travel in 2050.
Third, the airport lacks a “cargo city” like that of Miami which would facilitate the
transshipment and distribution of large amounts of cargo into Barcelona and other
places beyond the region. Fourth, both ports need to invest in electric vehicles to move
cargo from ship to rail or rail to plane, for the GHG produced by an idle ramp vehicle
can negate the savings of an electric train journey. Fifth, freight must come into the
seaport and the airport—located in the southwest part of the city—from very far away,
usually the suburbs or the industrial sector in the northeast near downtown Barcelona.
Cargo bound for places beyond Spain will still need the airport and the seaport in 2050,
and rail service into the industrial district is highly recommended. Sixth, there are traffic
nodes that are not connected properly, such as a possible link between a parking lot,
the tram, an electric bus, and the Metro. See in Figure 5 on the next page how cars,
buses, trams, and trains meet at a point near an important part of Barcelona’s business
district, but do not have a proper interchange. A suggested improvement would be to
combine all modes of transport and to provide a parking lot for commuters.
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
Figure 5: Traffic Node in Barcelona
On the outset, Barcelona has created a superior model for an integrated
transportation system that combines private and public service with trams, buses,
Metro, trains, funiculars, ships, and airplanes. The City is clearly ahead of some cities
with regard to intermodal centers—such as the one at the airport, the one at the
seaport, and the one at the downtown railway station, Sants, which interconnects Metro,
bus, and railway. Should costs increase over the years, Barcelonans will need more of
these intermodal centers all around. Furthermore, if Barcelona can manage to integrate
different modes of transport using rail service and electric vehicles, Barcelona could
copy Madrid’s model and lead the way for intermodal success. Even though RENFE
and Metro lines are not integrated in Barcelona, Professor Magrinyà Torner (2011)
admitted that the idea was considered once, but determined to be too costly at the time.
As for now, Barcelona still depends on fuel-consuming vehicles like the truck, the car,
and the local-line diesel-train and is still working to make the leap into the year 2050.
29
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5.4
Miami
The largest populated region in South Florida, Miami-Dade County features both
a seaport called the Port of Miami and an airport known as Miami International Airport.
There is a public bus service operated by the County in addition to private-fare jitneys
and taxis that compete along the region’s clogged major arteries. Additionally, there is
an elevated train service built during the early 1980s called Metrorail which was
constructed to speed workers from Hialeah and Kendall into downtown Miami in a sort
of hook-like line stretching from south to north. Metrorail was constructed above ground
inasmuch as a subway system could not be built because of the water table. Principal
users of Metrorail are those who work downtown, specifically business men and women
and not the blue-collar workers in Hialeah as originally anticipated. However, plans are
already underway to expand Metrorail from Miami International Airport to service
stations for Tri-Rail, Government Center, and later on the Port of Miami.
Miami depends heavily on its overworked highway system. The principal route is
the north-south highway known as I-95 which intersects with I-195 and I-395 to connect
the beaches with downtown and further out west, the Miami International Airport.
Because most Miamians prefer their car to the hour-long wait for a public bus that takes
twice as long to get somewhere as it does to travel by automobile, roadways are often
gridlocked during rush hour, and getting to Government Center, the airport, or the Port
of Miami can become something of a problem. Recently, some of Miami’s roadways
were privatized and now offer a “fast lane” through use of tolls. While travel has become
easier since then, the cost of gasoline continues to rise, and Miamians are not thinking
of what might happen in 2050 when the cost of gasoline could reach fifty dollars a gallon
in today’s currency.
30
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
If there is anything more congested than I-95, it would have to be Miami’s airport,
which handles hundreds of thousands of passengers every day. More vital to Miami’s
economy than passenger traffic, Miami International Airport’s greatest feature is its
cargo processing center, known as “Cargo City.” Passengers arrive on the east side of
the diagonal runway while cargo is brought into Cargo City on the west side of the
airport. Because of the large trucking facilities collocated at this center, transshipment
and distribution take imports within the United States via truck and rail and ship exports
to places all over Central and South America. As Prosperi (2008) explains, this heavily
industrialized area near the airport has created an employment center, a hotspot for
trade and commerce with the greatest number of employees in Miami-Dade County.
See Figure 6 below for more detail. As the airport passenger and cargo traffic figures in
Section 5.1 suggest, Miami International Airport’s success arises from a stable market
wherein the drivers of tourism and business are coupled with transit passengers who
are traveling to other locales beyond Miami, and with transshipment and processing at
Cargo City. In this way, Miami’s airport has become a leader in world travel.
Figure 6: Miami International Airport (facing west)
31
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
However, Miami International Airport’s crowning achievement is the building of
the Miami Intermodal Center. See Figure 7 below which illustrates how the intermodal
center was designed. Passengers can be picked up at the airport and board Metrorail,
which will take them to the intermodal center whereat they may choose the main route
into downtown Miami and outlying suburbs. The Miami Intermodal Center will also have
service via Metrorail into the Port of Miami, a much awaited accomplishment. There is
also the public bus service, Metrobus, in addition to the jitney service with one of the
private carriers. For those passengers planning to travel north, Metrorail brings these
passengers to the intermodal center where they can catch Tri-Rail to destinations in
Broward and Palm Beach counties. Finally, the intermodal center provides access to
Amtrak, the nation’s railway carrier, to cities such as Hollywood and Fort Lauderdale
and as far off as New York and Boston. Clearly, Miami’s intermodal center offers a
number of travel alternatives, many of which involve mass transit, or in the case of taxis,
jitneys, Super Shuttles, and private highway express lanes, a choice between public
and private transportation that does not necessarily require the use of a private car.
Figure 7: Miami Intermodal Center
32
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
Miami may be a leader in some respects, but how many more intermodal centers
are needed to make Miami viable in 2050? The airport may succeed somewhat with its
Intermodal Center located east of the main terminal, but what about downtown Miami?
Public and private buses run along the grid’s major arteries, and several have a
terminus near Government Center. Unfortunately, this terminus is in a congested area
with insufficient shelter against the sun and the elements, and to reach Miami’s
Metrorail or the People Mover that links important downtown buildings, people must
walk from the downtown bus terminal to the Government Center Station to catch one of
the infrequent trains into town. An integrated downtown intermodal center is needed,
much like Miami’s Overtown Station which was planned for this system and that of the
commuter rail like Tri-Rail which would operate on the FEC. As for Tri-Rail, it could be
said that the tri-county railway which connects at the Miami Airport Intermodal Center
will be needed more so at a downtown intermodal center and perhaps the seaport,
which is located about a mile away from Government Center. There has been much
discussion of constructing such centers, but in 2011, the City of Miami was still
constructing the Intermodal Center at the airport and not near to developing other
intermodal centers like it in strategic points like downtown.
However, there are several different limitations to Miami-Dade County’s
transportation infrastructure. For instance, there is presently no direct Metrorail or
express bus connecting MIA to the Port of Miami, a feature which has been planned but
not yet constructed. Many travelers may find that service useful in contrast to a thirty or
forty dollar taxi ride. Second, Miami needs a non-stop Metrorail service from the city
center to the airport. Without this service, people have to wait upwards of twenty
33
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
minutes for transportation depending on highway traffic. Third, the airport and the
seaport need to invest in electric vehicles to move cargo from ship to rail or rail to plane.
These vehicles would reduce the amount of GHG that accumulate near the two ports
and make the air less toxic to breathe. Fourth, railway service is near enough to the
airport and seaport, but it does not extend into Cargo City proper. Without rail service
close enough to the unloading points along berths and cargo bays at the airport,
distribution and transshipment become a problem. It is recommended that railway tracks
travel all the way into Cargo City rather than requiring trucking freight back and forth
from the airport center to the railway depot. Fifth, the streets of Miami tend to be
congested and would necessitate special highways for trucks and special lines for
railway service in order to move freight in and out of the city. Plans are already
underway to build a ramp and tunnel from I-95 to the Port of Miami, but the train tracks
still go through much of the city. Sixth, there is no connection between the airport or the
seaport with the beach. When people come to the City, they want a fast connection that
would take them to South Beach before going elsewhere, such as Dadeland Mall, which
incidentally is on the Metrorail route but without a close transfer to the entrance.
Ostensibly, Miami has blossomed with a commendable model for an integrated
transportation system that combines private and public service with buses, Metrorail,
trains, ships, and airplanes. Granted that the Miami-Dade County does not have the
variety nor the kind of transportation interconnectivity that cities like Madrid and
Barcelona have, Miami is still growing and showing promise with projects like the
airport’s Intermodal Center. If the County could develop its Metrorail system further into
the suburbs, since most of the County lives there and not downtown, and make train
34
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
travel throughout the region a more viable option, Miami would be ahead of many older
cities with regard to intermodal centers. Clearly, Miami’s Intermodal Center at the airport
stands to shine in efficiency at a time when people entering the airport will need a fast
way to get to the seaport or downtown. Moreover, Miami may someday integrate
different modes of transportation using electric rail service and electric vehicles instead
of fuel-consuming vehicles like buses, trucks, cranes, ramp vehicles, and diesel trains—
in order to address the issue of global oil depletion.
5.5
Fort Lauderdale
Located several miles north of Miami in Broward County, Fort Lauderdale
similarly offers beach access with numerous cultural opportunities. Fort Lauderdale is a
stop on Tri-Rail and Amtrak, and its airport features service to North, South, and Central
America through low-cost air carriers. The seaport, Port Everglades, hosts just as many
cruise ships and large container vessels as the Port of Miami, and there are many
interchanges along the way enabling ship-to-rail and airport-to-rail. Even though
Broward County does not have a true intermodal center much less an elevated transit
system like Metrorail, there have been discussions about starting an airport people
mover (APM) or a transit express bus option to connect Fort Lauderdale’s seaport with
the airport. This proposal would be gladly welcomed since the average taxi fare from
Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport to Port Everglades currently runs
upwards of twenty dollars for a ride that takes less than ten minutes.
Another option that was considered before recession of 2009 was transit service
along the Florida East Coast (FEC) corridor from Palm Beach to Overtown Station in
downtown Miami. Operating parallel to Tri-Rail on the FEC railway line, the SFECC
35
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
option would have an actual stop at FLL with an interchange of bus, people mover, and
train at an intermodal center ideally located within eastern part of the traffic loop feeding
into the airport. During an “International Planning Design Studio” at Florida Atlantic
University,
students
from
the
United
States
and
Germany
presented
their
recommendations for a tram, light-rail, or electric bus that would connect visitors to the
area with people-mover service to downtown Fort Lauderdale and Sawgrass Mills Mall.
See Figure 8 below for a suggested tram route including a Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood
International Aiport intermodal center.
Figure 8: FLL Intermodal Idea
Granted that there have been many ideas and many proposals such as where to
put the intermodal center (see gray half-circle in Figure 8), unfortunately, FLL remains
one of the most poorly serviced airports for intermodal growth. For instance, train tracks
run right between the airport and Port Everglades, which would be optimal for
36
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
developing a shared route, but in order to load freight onto this railway line which
belongs to the FEC, trucks must be utilized to move cargo from either a cargo terminal
to a depot near Federal Highway. These service trucks are chiefly gasoline-powered;
however, there is no curfew on operations, which means FLL is a twenty-four hour,
seven days a week operational center just like MIA. Trucks can move freight at any time
of the day and bring cargo into the city or deliver locally as necessary.
There is also the opportunity to develop increased travel on the CSX railroad
which operates west of the airport near I-95. The CSX runs north to south and already
offers travel to Tri-Rail, the commuter train between Miami International Airport and
Palm Beach, and Amtrak, the national railway system which takes passengers north to
locations such as the Carolinas, Virginia, Washington, D.C., and New York. Presently,
commuter buses connect airport passenger with Tri-Rail at the Dania Beach Station but
not the Fort Lauderdale Station where Amtrak stops. It would be suggested that cargo
and passenger traffic be separated between CSX and the FEC railway tracks in order to
facilitate travel and the transfer of cargo from airport or seaport to train service.
However, as pointed out earlier, Fort Lauderdale does not possess a suitable
intermodal center for passenger or cargo traffic. First, passengers are relegated to
taking a car—taxi, rental, or personal—or else the public bus, which operates on the
half-hour, for transportation into downtown Fort Lauderdale or Port Everglades.
Currently, a public shuttle does offer service between the airport and the Tri-Rail station
for Dania Beach located three miles away, but Tri-Rail does not take passengers to
places out west such as Weston, Cooper City, Plantation, Cypress Creek, or Coral
Springs. Second, there is no “cargo city” like Miami’s where employment would be
37
Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
concentrated and focused on transshipment and distribution. Instead, Fort Lauderdale
depends solely on trucking into the airport or into Port Everglades. This method is
antiquated and not conducive to the reduction of GHG in the atmosphere. It should be
noted that airport and seaport trucks, trains, ships, airplanes, and service vehicles all
consume oil in addition to Florida Power and Light’s garbage burning plant located
between the airport and seaport on Eller Drive.
It should be said that since Fort Lauderdale does not have in place a model
intermodal center like any of the other three cities, this city should invest in its future and
at least introduce electric vehicles at each port to move cargo efficiently and effectively.
Furthermore, Fort Lauderdale greatly needs a mass transportation system, either public
or private, that transports passengers to the seaport from the airport, and vice versa.
Right now, Fort Lauderdale depends on public buses, Tri-Rail, Amtrak, freight trains,
ships, airplanes, trucks, and private ground transportation including taxicabs, rental
cars, and privately owned vehicles. Granted that Fort Lauderdale does not have the
variety nor the kind of transportation interconnectivity that cities like Madrid and
Barcelona have, Broward County is still growing. If the County could revisit its APM
system in the years to come and make train travel a more viable option, Fort Lauderdale
would be on its way to success in 2050 with regard to intermodal centers. In the
meantime, Fort Lauderdale clearly needs to integrate different modes of transportation
at the airport and seaport using electric vehicles in order to address the issue of global
oil depletion. Without planning now, Fort Lauderdale stands to be left behind other
coastal American cities that are intermodal-ready, and the market will shift to those
cities that are economically and efficiently sound in the years to come.
38
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6.0
RESULTS
There is a need for intermodal centers now, but how badly will they be needed in
the future? To answer this question, one must weigh in the cost of fuel in 2050,
increased passenger travel and cargo traffic, and suburbanization, as seen in places
like Madrid and Barcelona. Moreover, one must consider logistics, demand, and terrain
like Miami and Fort Lauderdale. Clearly high energy costs will generate innovative ideas
on how to improve freight and passenger traffic. One might even predict that electric
cars and trucks would be more common on the roadway sometime by the year 2050,
and that gas-consuming vehicles such as the typical American bus or diesel train would
fall into desuetude.
While airplanes and diesel-burning ocean-going vessels might present a problem
for travel in 2050, there might be inventions such as a nuclear passenger or cargo ship
or a “new-fuel” airplane. Nonetheless, innovators and inventors will probably offer
society a number of options for ocean-crossing. By 2050, there may be many different
ways to transport a business person who works on the Castellana in Madrid to the office
of his or her counterparts on Brickell Avenue in Miami—all by a mixture of public and
private options, to say the least.
However, one must return to the issue of tomorrow’s intermodal center. Clearly,
there will be a need for connecting passengers and cargo as efficiently as possible from
plane to rail to ship with as many public and private transportation options. Space is
needed for these intermodal centers at airports, seaports, and downtown business hubs
where land and energy resources are economized as much as possible. For instance,
passengers coming into Barcelona from an AVE train with their arms full of packages
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and suitcases would not want to backtrack several miles on the Metro in order to reach
the Port of Barcelona or the airport at El Prat de Llobregat. An idea for improvement
might be to create more RENFE stops at these locations. This scenario could also
benefit transshipment and cargo distribution in places like Miami and Fort Lauderdale
where lines are close to the various ports, but not close enough.
Ultimately, the intermodal center of the future will have to draw upon a number of
innovative ideas such as the ones just discussed. The idea of electric buses and trams
will have to be discussed in addition to the need for speed rail from airport to downtown
center or to seaport. Passenger and cargo train lines may be separated, and some
cargo may have to be moved to underground rail in order to avoid traffic above ground.
These ideas illustrate how the intermodal center of tomorrow will be useful in places like
Madrid, Barcelona, Miami, and Fort Lauderdale.
6.1
Discussion
From the study of intermodal centers in each of these four cities—Miami,
Barcelona, Miami, and Fort Lauderdale—it becomes evident that progress is being
made to advance transportation for the year 2050, but at a very slow pace. For
instance, nearly all airports have considered or are now considering electric vehicles for
use of cargo transfer and transshipment at the airport, and in places, the seaport.
Advancement in this area will lead to fewer GHG emissions and less oil consumption.
Ideas such as these will make intermodal centers more valuable in the years to come
whereat passenger and cargo traffic may increase or stay the same, as one can see
from the tables in Section 5.1. In other words, intermodal centers of the future may be
more numerous and feature more electric vehicles than presently seen.
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Despite the common link among these principal cities in regard to the role of
electric vehicles, it should be discussed how intermodal centers in places like Madrid
and Barcelona compare to those in Miami and Fort Lauderdale. For example, Spain is
clearly ahead with its metro systems and electronic trains. Barcelona has included the
use of a tram running east to west, and both cities have invited private bus and train
service to compete with EMT in Madrid and RENFE everywhere else. Granted that
electric trains consume fewer fossil fuels—less than whatever is used at a power plant
in Spain—and are more numerous in Europe, there are some trains left in Barcelona
that still use diesel fuel. Notwithstanding, Spain’s use of trains is considerably higher
than that by cities in the United States. Thus, and in these respects, Madrid and
Barcelona are ahead of South Florida wherein no electric trains are used at all.
Miami and Fort Lauderdale are somewhat behind in another respect, namely the
use of mass transit. As an example, Miami’s public transportation system depends on
three components: the standard fifty-passenger bus, the elevated train known as
Metrorail, and the small automated train known as the People Mover. Additionally, there
is internal competition in Miami-Dade County with regard to private jitney service.
Similarly, Fort Lauderdale has just the public bus system, known as BCt, and recent
plans to upgrade travel near the airport and the seaport with a rail or people mover
system like Miami’s were shelved because of funding problems in 2010. Obviously,
Miami and Fort Lauderdale residents use public transportation less and the private
vehicle more. All of these aspects of public and private transportation underscore the
fact that South Florida is very much behind Spain and needs to develop an integrated
model that includes more electric vehicles like metro rail and the people mover.
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
So how then exactly does Spain compare to South Florida with regard to
intermodal centers? Spanish cities like Madrid and Barcelona have more options
available to its residents in terms of both passenger and freight travel. One can catch
very easily a train, a metro line, a bus, or even a plane or a ship when visiting an
intermodal center. They are located conveniently near airport terminals, train stations,
and even the port. These centers offer a number of amenities, such as the aerotropolis
in Madrid where one can buy a sandwich or a newspaper, and cater to large numbers of
people who often use the intermodal centers on a daily basis. Clearly, the traffic in these
centers is very high, and if it were not for public transportation, there would not be so
much traffic in some of these intermodal locations.
Conversely, South Florida has very few intermodal centers primarily because of
lack of widely-used public transportation. An example of the paucity in such centers is
Metrorail in Miami. The planners of the late 1970s dreamt of an elevated train that
connected certain parts of the county with the downtown business center of Miami;
however, very few people actually used it, even in the year 2011. Consequently, there
was little reason to design an intermodal center on the scale of one of Madrid’s until the
recent plan to bring Metrorail to the Miami International Airport to connect everything
including Tri-Rail under one house close to the airport terminal. Miami’s Intermodal
Center is the only model passenger center of its kind in South Florida, which does not
compare very well at all to the many others already in use over in Spain.
There is one other kind of intermodal center which Miami possesses that
compares much better against similar ones in Spain, namely the freight processing
centers that make up Cargo City. Cargo City is a unique center located close to the
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airport runways that is so large in terms of industry that it is its own employment center
(Prosperi, 2008). In other words, there are so many workers there that the number
dwarfs that of people working in office buildings along Downtown Miami. This center
processes, transships, and distributes freight all over South Florida and even to parts
north. There is no comparison between Cargo City and the cargo centers of Madrid or
Barcelona. Proportionately with respect to the total population of Miami-Dade County,
Miami’s Cargo City handles more freight, trucks more freight, and ships more freight via
train and cargo ship than Madrid or Barcelona alone. It is for this reason that Miami’s
model might fare better than that of any of Spain’s.
Nonetheless, the results of this study lead one to conclude that Spain might be
more prepared for 2050 than South Florida. Spain already uses electric trains, electric
trams, and electric Metro lines. South Florida has practically none, save Metrorail and
the People Mover in Miami. These aspects of public transportation might lead to
possible interconnectivity at certain points, such as the ones whereat intermodal centers
have already been constructed. Needless to say, intermodal centers of the future—
daresay by the year 2050—will have electric vehicles in place, such as the electric
forklift and the electric train, in addition to new ideas and innovations, such as the oilless airplane or the nuclear-powered cargo ship. Vehicles such as these will dock as
closely as possible to new and improved intermodal centers to make cargo transfer or
passenger travel more convenient and free of burdensome connections, like having to
walk a mile with one’s suitcases to catch a train on the other side of an air or sea
terminal upon arriving from an airplane or disembarking from a cruise ship. Clearly,
intermodal centers are part of the solution for world oil depletion in the year 2050.
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
6.2
Cargo Movers
Cargo movers are an old idea that was bandied about when subway systems
were constructed all over Europe. Many people saw the efficiency in moving freight from
location to location underground without having to waste money on gas for trucks that
were often mired in traffic. It was proposed that containerized freight could be
transported more efficiently on the same railways used by metro lines and even the
national railway corporation, such as RENFE. See Figure 9 below for an artistic
impression of what a cargo mover would look like in one of Madrid’s metro stations.
Figure 9: Cargo Mover in Madrid?
Nonetheless, Dr. Francesc Magrinyà Torner of the Polytechnic University of
Catalunya expresses disdain for the concept inasmuch as there would be too many
issues involved with its implementation. The most obvious problem is cost. How would
one lower the cargo down below and retrieve it at the other end? How would it be
transported during the day or the night? There are too many cost-related problems with
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
retrofitting and new construction, and there is still the problem of moving freight from a
terminus, such as a large enough metro station, to its final destination at a store down
the street. As Dr. Magrinyà Torner explains, one would still need a truck, or several
trucks, to move freight from Point A to Point B, not to mention special equipment
necessary to load and unload the freight from the metro line and hoist it to the surface.
There are simply too many costs which preclude the efficacy of such an operation.
On the other hand, what options will planners have in 2050 when the price of
gasoline could force us to try drastic means to facilitate the delivery and transport of
freight across town? Intermodal centers may one day have a freight-lifting device at
suitable sites such as industrial centers, airports, and seaports, thereby hastening the
day when cargo movers are indeed worth the cost of implementing. Granted that places
like Miami and Fort Lauderdale, which cannot have subway systems because of the
water table, cannot implement cargo movers, cities such as Madrid and Barcelona may
one day see the development of cargo movers in strategic locations around town.
6.3
Electric Buses and Trucks
Whereas it may be difficult to imagine, Fort Lauderdale is already acquiring an
airport fleet with electric vehicles for the year 2012. This necessity arises from engines
that are constantly in use during the day and often at night. Needless to say, Miami and
other cities like Madrid and Barcelona are probably following suit inasmuch as the cost
of fuel and the spread of greenhouse gases create such terrible headaches for airport
officials and planners alike. Electric forklifts, tows, and other ramp vehicles are clearly
the way of the future. Soon every intermodal center across the globe will have such
vehicles for their use in moving freight from ship to rail to plane.
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
Curiously enough, not all electric vehicles have reached complete popularity in
South Florida. For instance, electric buses are not nearly as popular in the United
States as they are in places like Europe. Electric buses depend on electric cable strung
above streets and provide energy to the standard bus carrying passengers from one
location to the next. Barcelona already has a few in use that interchange with tram and
Metro stations along the way. It should be mentioned that Miami and Fort Lauderdale
are now experimenting with hybrid buses in order to reduce energy costs, but they have
not committed yet to the fully electric bus like those in Europe. See Figure 10 below for
an example of these transportation alternatives.
Figure10: Electric Bus in Europe
Although hurricanes may preclude stringing electric cable all over the cities of
Miami and Fort Lauderdale, there is a choice for residents of Miami and Fort Lauderdale
to continue using wasteful gasoline-powered cars or to embrace fuel-less modes of
transport such as the electric bus or light rail. Come the year 2050, residents of these
two cities may find it necessary to lay track and electric cable. Moreover, there may be a
higher cost to pay for such service. People must be aware.
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
6.4
Speed Rail from Ports into the City
In many European cities where mass transit is a way of life, public transportation
is of sound quality and links airports and seaports with the important employment
centers of the metropolis. Madrid and Barcelona are struggling to reach that point by
building intermodal stations at the ports with connections to downtown locations, but as
of yet, there is no speed rail service from the airport to the city center—say, Barajas to
Puerta de Sol. Miami and Fort Lauderdale have long relied on their antiquated bus
systems to bring passengers into the city center, but even with an express bus from
Miami International Airport to Downtown Miami, there is insufficient celerity. Ostensibly,
there is demand, but there is insufficient action to install the obvious links from port to
business center. Therefore, it is recommended that faster non-stop connections into
town via Metro be constructed in Madrid and Barcelona with similar means created for
elevated train systems like Miami’s Metrorail.
6.5
Designated Passenger/Cargo Lines
When a railway line is used amply by passenger and by cargo, it becomes
necessary to construct separate railways to accommodate the intense traffic on the line.
Many cities have done this both in the United States and in Europe. According to a
RENFE employee in Barcelona, there are existing railways for cargo and for
passengers from the airport and seaport. Madrid plans to do so, too. On the other hand,
Miami and Fort Lauderdale depend jointly on the parallel lines of CSX and the FEC for
all kinds of traffic, although both handle freight primarily. CSX is used by Tri-Rail and
Amtrak during the day when freight tends to leave, too. To add to the confusion, plans
have been discussed for a Tri-Rail-like passenger corridor on the FEC.
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
This situation creates problems for passenger traffic on Amtrak and Tri-Rail.
Many times passengers have to sit on the train and wait for a freight train to pass before
continuing towards their destinations. Oftentimes, there is a pile-up of vehicular traffic
on the sides waiting to cross the railway tracks. Ideally, there should be separate lines
of travel for freight and for passenger rail, such as Tri-Rail, but one runs into the
problem of space and where to put a third or fourth rail all the way up the coast from
Miami to Palm Beach County. There is simply not enough space currently, but if the
price of gasoline becomes too exorbitant, South Florida may have to buy a line from
CSX or the FEC, or else the local transportation authority may have to commission the
building of a separate railway elsewhere. See Figure 11 below for an example of what
separate tracks would look like along CSX or the FEC.
Figure 11: Separate Railway Tracks
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
7.0
CONCLUSION
Spain and South Florida possess similar qualities. They are large regions with
mixed populations and are popular travel destinations, three of which offer beach
access and a variety of cultural attractions. Additionally, these cities are all developing
their potential as world business centers and have populations in the millions. There are
also air links now between cities, such as Miami with Madrid and recently, Barcelona,
and there is the popularity of the seaports in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and Barcelona
which bring in cargo and passengers from all over the world. Perceptibly, these regions
have grappled lately with increased passenger and freight traffic, and because of this
influx of traffic, there is an obvious need for improved infrastructure and easier
movement from one mode of transportation to the other, such as from airplane or cruise
ship to downtown city center.
It should be of no surprise that Madrid, Barcelona, Miami, and Fort Lauderdale
have been constructing intermodal centers to facilitate passenger travel and cargo
transshipment at key operations centers such as airports and seaports. For instance,
Barcelona and Madrid already have intermodal centers for passengers, and Miami is in
the process of developing one for its airport. Furthermore, some cities like Miami have
created cargo cities which move large quantities of freight in and out of Miami via truck,
rail, plane, and even ship. Ideally, there should be connector loci such as these
intermodal centers for passengers and cargo as they travel to different points between
airports, seaports, and even railway. Moreover, these modes of transport lend
themselves to effective and efficient travel across large distances such as international
borders, which emphasizes the need for the construction of intermodal centers.
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
What may hasten the construction of more intermodal centers in the near future
is the rising cost of energy resources, especially that of oil. It was discussed that oil and
gas reserves will reach a critical point in 2050 whereupon the world will have to find
other sources of energy. Electric cars, buses, and trucks already exist, and cities like
Miami and Fort Lauderdale already use hybrid buses in their public transportation
systems with a moderate amount of success. Moreover, the need to conserve space,
time, and money will become apparent in 2050 where a walking public will seek to
minimize each of those aspects in going from ship to shore and then from rail to plane.
People will seek inexpensive rides—probably using mass transit wherever possible—
and try to limit the number of transfer points as much as one can, such as disembarking
from a ship and boarding a train in as little distance as possible.
In light of these observations, it can be theorized that the intermodal growth plans
of the future will include maximizing the interchanges with as many different modes of
transportation as possible and expediting travel in these four model cities with regard to
cargo-related transport and passenger traffic. Current intermodal centers in places like
Madrid’s airport and Miami’s Cargo City are not what one would call “complete” as such,
for there are many more alternatives that should be considered in the years to come:
cargo movers and high-speed trains from the intermodal nexus to downtown business
centers and central train stations. Plans for future intermodal center growth in cities like
Fort Lauderdale may one day include all of these ideas, such as connecting airport to
seaport traffic and providing a link between downtown Fort Lauderdale and the ports,
not to mention the use of trams, electric forklifts, electric buses, and people movers that
facilitate the transport of freight and passengers in one giant center.
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Comparatively, Spain and South Florida are neck and neck in advancing
intermodal centers in its key cities—Spain perhaps more so than South Florida.
Examples of their growth include train to metro passenger connectors—something that
Miami, Barcelona, and Madrid all have now. Then there is the topic of cargo, which
lends itself superbly to Miami’s Cargo City at Miami International Airport, to the Port of
Miami, to Port Everglades, and to the Port of Barcelona. These four locations are
functioning well at present, even though many are using cranes, forklifts, and trucks that
require the use of carbon fuels. It should be noted that if any mode of transport can be
fully energized using non-fossil fuels, passenger travel will be before cargo processing,
for the infrastructure and machinery were not made for “clean energy” and will take a
long time for retrofitting.
Despite the apparent similarities among Madrid, Barcelona, Miami, and Fort
Lauderdale, there is one key leader that shows the greatest amount of promise for the
year 2050, and that would have to be Barcelona. Barcelona already has private and
public transportation in the way of train and metro service, but the greatest achievement
is the flexibility of the city with regard to shipyard and cruise terminal traffic, cargo and
passenger rail service, airport access, downtown train stations, tram operation, and bus
service in and out of the city. Barcelona has more intermodal centers than Madrid,
Miami, or Fort Lauderdale and offers the greatest number of variety of transfers with
different modes of transportation than even Madrid. When Barcelona finishes its plan for
implementing a fuel-conscious transportation system in the year 2050, there should be
many combinations of getting into, out of, and transiting through the city that are
available to the public—more so than any other city in this study.
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Bradford, Intermodal Growth Plans
Spain and South Florida intermodal centers are springing up in areas where they
are most needed right now: the airport, the seaport, industrial centers, and the
downtown business districts. It is clear from the statistics reviewed earlier that these
intermodal centers are greatly needed and that more additions would be recommended.
Madrid, Barcelona, Miami, and Fort Lauderdale are dynamic cities, three of which are
on the coastline, and the need for efficient airport to seaport to rail service is perceptibly
needed for such large cities—especially as the population grows and the urban region
expands for each city. Intermodal centers are the future of nearly every big city, and
growth plans must be made for the inclusion of as many different modes of traffic
including public and private transportation, light and heavy rail, cars and buses, trucks
and airport ramp vehicles, and even airplanes and ocean-going vessels.
Moreover, further study is suggested herewith into the prospects for travel using
“clean energy” and ideas like Spain’s AVE speed-rail system which is entirely electric
and now serves the entire nation. Without more research into the energy needs of 2050,
intermodal growth plans may not completely reach the goals of the people who will use
these intermodal centers, and boondoggles may arise from constructing centers for
2012 when the intent is for far into the future. The usefulness of Miami’s Intermodal
Center has yet to be seen, but if enough passengers ride from back and forth from the
airport to the seaport, there may be some great value of the system in 2050. Therefore,
it is recommended that planners strive high to meet all of these goals in the future when
planning for Spain and South Florida’s intermodal centers—to include a great variety of
transportation modes, to reduce the use of fossil fuels and promote “clean energy,” and
to minimize travel cost while maximizing efficiency in both space and design.
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8.0
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