Abstract
Bahrain industry is developing at a high acceleration rate due to its vision
towards encouraging the private sector to invest in Bahrain and create the
central logistic zone in the region. This study aims to study the existing freight
movement inside Bahrain from/to main gateways and propose future
transportation modes based upon the factors which are considered as
important for mode choice by the traders.
It was found that the truck is the only available mode of transport for freight
in Bahrain. For this reason, the main freight routes inside Bahrain from/to
gateways have been identified to 3 main freight routes linking Bahrain
getaways and main freight hubs that will contain more than 50% of the current
freight trips. These routes have been found based on the relevant secondary
data that has been collected and calibrated to fit the purpose of this study,
which was mainly from Bahrain Transport Model (2020). Moreover, these
routes have been demarcated on Bahrain road network 2030 finding the least
cost routes using ArcGIS software.
To select the alternative mode of transport for each route, a Fuzzy Analytical
Hierarchy Process method has been used to evaluate each mode of transport,
which are; rail, dedicated truck lane and Underground Logistic System in this
study based on 7 criteria. The weight of each criteria and mode has been found
based on FAHP survey with the top importer and exporter companies in
Bahrain along these routes. The survey shows that the most important criteria,
ranked from most to least important are; Safety, Environment, Cost,
Reliability, Speed, Flexibility and Capacity. It has been found that rail mode
is more suitable system to link Khalifa Bin Salman Port to King Fahad
Causeway and Lhaasay area. On the other hand, it was recommended to keep
using the truck mode for Khalifa Bin Salman Port to Airport link but with
some infrastructure improvement, like dedicating a special lane for trucks.
Moreover, provide dry ports at the main freight hubs inside Bahrain which are
Salmbad and Sitra Industrial area will increase the efficiency of logistics
operations in Bahrain and provide better transportation network for freight
movement. Providing these alternatives of modes of transport will encourage
the investments and reduce the infrastructure cost on the government, which
will create more sustainable environment for logistic operation and
transportation inside Bahrain for all relevant parties.