Multimodal transport - what is it?

In recent decades, global freight traffic has multiplied. This is primarily due to the global increase in demand. But how can favorable prices and tight delivery deadlines continue to be combined in the future? And how can customers continue to be assured that their orders will be there at the right time?

The answer: multimodal transport!

This involves using several different modes of transport for the movement of any goods. Multimodal transport thus enables the best possible combination of speed and favorable prices.

How can such a multimodal transport look like? Below we offer an example.

Air, sea, land - multimodal transport worldwide

Although the term is not used very often, we are all familiar with multimodal transport. In fact, international container transport is just such a thing. For example, the container is loaded in the country of departure and then taken by truck to the local port. There it is loaded onto a container ship and transported halfway around the world. The prerequisites for multimodal transport are therefore already guaranteed - truck and ocean-going vessel, two modes of transport.

But air freight is also always a multimodal transport: first the truck, then the airplane, and then a truck again. The various modes of transport can be combined in any way to meet all the requirements for multimodal transport. For example, the combination of pre-carriage and on-carriage by rail and a main run by container ship is by far the most cost-effective way of moving ordinary goods around the world.

When things have to move fast, multimodal transport by truck and air freight is of course unbeatable. It only takes a few days for the goods to reach the desired destination. If you are looking for a balanced middle ground: Ocean-Air offers of multimodal transport are cheaper than pure airfreight and faster than container shipping.