North-south road-rail cargo a delicate balancing act – corridor expert

Rail freight interests in the Copperbelt area of Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo have no illusions that current delays at the primary road crossing of Kasumbulesa could cause a multi-modal re-balancing of cargo, currently heavily skewed in favour of road transporters. “It’s simply not what we’re hoping for,” said corridor facilitator Kudzanyai Bangure of the Nepad Business Foundation (NBF), commenting on persistent congestion that has caused massive build-ups at Kasumbulesa. Speaking at a rail freight convention last year, the organisation’s programme manager for infrastructure explained that the preponderance of cargo going via road placed a heavy toll on maintaining roads in the emerging market countries

along the corridor. At the time Bangure said 70%-80% of bulk cargo going north was freighted by road, posing a major challenge to countries that were investing significantly in maintaining infrastructure.

But if his views then created the impression that the NBF was keen to leverage off road haulage congestion at points like Kasumbulesa to secure more cargo for rail, Bangure has now set the record straight.

“From our perspective we’re definitely still trying to get the balance right and we remain concerned about the amount of freight that is sent north by road when it could probably be freighted by rail. “In the end, however, the

overarching objective is to ensure that you have an appropriate balance that benefits the entire supply chain system as a whole.” He added that, even if the corridor was running optimally and more cargo found its way onto rail, there would also be last mile and first mile stretches that would have to be covered by road. “Eventually it comes down to having an effective, integrated system that complements itself. Customers have an entire portfolio of issues that need to be considered. “They want to know whether you can deliver in full and on time. They want consistency, reliability and predictability, even if it means longer lead times. As long as they can plan for it.”