Logistics company has been incentivising companies to move containers by rail rather than road from DP World Southampton
DP World’s Modal Shift Programme in Southampton has cut carbon emissions by more than 17,000 tonnes in its first year of operation after removing 64,300 truck journeys from UK roads.
According to the global logistics company, the move looks to significantly advance more sustainable logistics and the movement of UK goods.
The Modal Shift Programme was launched in September 2023 to improve the commercial viability of rail transport for import-laden containers.
Under the programme, which is financed by a small charge on all inbound containers coming through the port, customers are paid an incentive for each container moved by rail from DP World Southampton to a railhead within 140 miles.
The programme from the logistics giant has so far boosted the share of rail freight at DP World Southampton from 21 per cent to more than 30 per cent, with ambitions to progress this further towards 40 per cent in 2026.
Additionally, in the first 12 months of the initiative, four new rail freight services were launched to provide more options for DP World customers.
These include routes from Southampton to Birmingham, Cardiff, East Midlands Gateway and Doncaster.
The news comes as DP World launched a second rail service between its Southampton and London Gateway logistics hubs last month, doubling the rail freight capacity between two of the UK’s largest container ports.
Vice president of commercial and supply chain at DP World UK, John Trenchard, said that the “outstanding success” of the Modal Shift Programme at Southampton in its first year is “testament to our commitment to provide customers with more choices for their supply chains”.
He explained: “With this significant increase in rail freight volume, equivalent to the transfer of approximately six million road miles to rail, we are giving more of our customers the opportunity to explore the benefits of rail to the sustainability and resilience of their containerised supply chains.
“This achievement not only reflects our goal to become the most efficient and sustainable logistics provider in the UK, but also illustrates DP World’s commitment to achieve net zero across our global operations by 2050.”
