20 >> 19 port


Issue 5 2020 - Freight Business Journal


on all roads leading to the


Irish ports in Wales, including Fishguard and Pembroke in the South and the A55 to Holyhead in the north, is a lack of secure truck parking. The problems could well be exacerbated after Brexit if more checks lead to congestion and delays. Simpson comments:


“Holyhead is clearly an important


to Welsh


business and the road network in and out needs to support the port. We need modelling for borders so that we are prepared and delays at ports are avoided.” In the West of England, FTA


policy manager Chris Yarsley says that the improvements to the A303, including a bypass in a tunnel around Stonehenge, is “the big-ticket item”. The scheme would create a continuous dual carriageway and, together with the M4 and M5 motorways, create a much more resilient route to the west. The industry is awaiting the


minister’s on the Development Consent Order for the scheme and while Yarsley does expect it to go through, these are uniquely uncertain times. But the scheme does have very widespread support.


It not will impinge on Stonehenge


itself – indeed, it will take traffic away from its immediate area – and it also has the support of the environmental and archaeological interests, including the UNESCO world heritage organisation. Yarsley comments: “FTA is urging the government


to


decide in favour of the A303 improvement scheme; this initiative is vital to solving the reliability, congestion and safety issues along this corridor. The UK needs efficient and effective road transport networks to function properly, but the issues with the A303 have long blighted economic


and social growth in the region. The plans, which include dualling of the remaining single carriageway sections and the creation of a tunnel by Stonehenge, would significantly improve infrastructure in the South West while supporting tourism and the respecting the region’s heritage by removing the busy road from view of the monument. With the A303 such a crucial corridor for both the tourism and logistics industries, it must be fit for purpose and able to support both sustainably and effectively. FTA has been campaigning for several years to see this scheme come to


fruition; now, we urge the government to make the right decision for the future of the South West.” The


other


///WALES major issue


affecting road freight operations are the new clean air zones in Bristol and Bath, which although now postponed until next year at the earliest will eventually affect operators. There will be a £9 daily charge for vans but for heavy trucks that do not conform to the latest Euro 6 emissions levels it will be £100 a day. The Bath zone is especially


problematical because, unusually for a major


settlement, there is no bypass and major routes cut right through the centre and the zone. It is possible to avoid paying


the charge by investing in Euro 6 trucks but many smaller firms do not have the resources to do so, although some grant help is available. Secure parking is also an


issue for the region, as it is in the rest of the country. Two years on from a ministerial statement, there has been no concrete action and FTA will continue to keep up the pressure on the government


to identify build suitable sites.


Gary Phillips has joined Caerphilly (Ystrad Mynach)- based TWT Logistics Group as sales and forwarding director. Previously at Rhys Davies Logistics, where he headed up the forwarding department


there for over 10 years, he will in his new role be responsible for growing a 30-strong fleet of container skeletal trailers which operate mainly at the ports of Southampton, London Gateway and Felixstowe


as well as an extensive international forwarding business. The company also maintains a depot at Andover, near the port of Southampton. TWT Logistics also handles its own customs clearances in-house and now has a six- strong forwarding department. Container handling equipment is available at Ystrad Mynach. Phillips plans to expand


TWT’s forwarding business, potentially moving into new markets


and also possibly


expanding warehousing activities too. TWT also operates an extensive domestic logistics operation serving customers throughout the UK, with a fleet of 90 trucks and 70 trailers. The freight forwarding market in Wales itself was


Keeping busy in Bristol


Despite the Corona crisis, Davies Turner’s Bristol office is still busy, says head of sales development for the south west, Edward Lucy: “Ocean traffic is still doing reasonably well, following the stoppage in China. Road is down, though, but there are some signs of recovery, though it tends to be up one day, down the next and it’s still not out of the woods yet.” India is a particular strength


for Davies Turner in the South- west – many of the region’s firms import giftware, raw


materials and automotive parts from there – and it can offer very good rates and services. China and the Far East is also important. Customers


are slowly


coming back to Davies Turner, though some are holding back because their staff are still furloughed. Interestingly, Davies Turner’s


Italy business “didn’t drop off a cliff” during the worst of the crisis there, as there was a need to keep essential supplies such as medical material and foodstuffs moving.


Davies Turner operates


three sites in the Bristol area which together comprise its largest facility in the region. Bristol also houses Davies Turner’s logistics activities in the South-west and, again, this business has continued,0..102 though at a lower level during the corona crisis. A drinks and a consumer products firm are among two of the mainstays and they have both been very busy, says Lucy. He adds: “We’re now seeing


e-commerce picking up, and in fact we have no furloughed


inevitably affected by the Covid


crisis, perhaps with many


manufacturers shutting down their operations, “although it was


a bit more


buoyant than the domestic business,” Phillips comments. “Now though we are seeing business coming back.”


staff in the warehouses, other than a few that are self- isolating.” In fact, he foresees “a second


e-commerce boom” as a result of the lockdown. Retailers who were forced to close their high street stores have started online operations to keep their businesses afloat and many have been pleasantly surprised at how easy– and profitable – these were to set up. Likewise, consumers have turned to online deliveries to their door in a bid to beat queues outside those bricks and mortar shops that did remain open. In fact, one major worry is the future of the High Street in its


22 >>


holds up in a tough market


Railfreight


Welsh traffic was holding up surprising well


during the


corona crisis, or at least some sectors were, says Rail Freight Group (RFG) Wales and West Midlands representative, Robin Smith, speaking in early June. With many construction


sites still operating, aggregates traffic was still quite strong, while major operator DB Cargo said that it was still running 70-100 trains a week in South Wales and to Shotton in the North-east. Indeed, there was a new international flow via the Channel Tunnel between Port Talbot and Charleroi in Belgium, along with 20 trains a week of exports from Port Talbot to Newport docks. “DB in South Wales is not


doing badly,” he confirmed. There are also two trains a


day from the port of Milford Haven to the Westbury and Theale areas carrying imported fuel. Freightliner intermodal


services between the Wentloog terminal


near Cardiff


Felixstowe, Southampton and Daventry were also believed to be still operating. Naturally, long-term plans


to develop rail freight in Wales are in abeyance. Robin Smith is keen to see progress on suggested plans for a new Mid Wales terminal at Moat Lane


on the Shrewsbury-


Aberystwyth line and in North Wales. Perhaps some Welsh government pump-priming


and


might be needed to get things off the ground, he suggests. The other infrastructure


issue is the transfer of the network of lines in the Cardiff Valleys


from national UK


infrastructure operator Network Rail to Transport for Wales. RFG is somewhat concerned that the creation of two infrastructure entities rather than one could make life complicated where freight trains transfer from one regime to another. There are regular coal trains from the opencast Cwmbargoed coal mine, which use the Rhymney Valley line, but no other regular freight at present. It is the sole survivor of an intensive operation that once served the South Wales coalfield where freight


trains


comfortably outnumbered passenger services until quite recently. The handover to the new


infrastructure operator only happened in March and it is too early to say whether there have been any issues. The new Keolis-Amery


consortium, which has been appointed to operate the rail infrastructure in Wales as well as run the passenger trains has also been charged with converting the Cardiff Valleys rail system to tram-type light rail operation and any upsurge in the frequency of passenger trains could preclude additional freight trains in the Valleys.


and


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