The slot management system introduced by the veterinary control authority of Hamburg enables trucks to book inspection appointments and helps to reduce traffic.
Before introducing the slot management system, the veterinary inspection points in the Port of Hamburg were called at by truck drivers at very irregular times, with volatile peaks and lows throughout the day. In certain time periods, they were overstressed by trucks, resulting in waiting times, queues and tail-backs. Partly, trucks even had to be asked to move to another inspection point, making for extra traffic and CO2 emissions.
To end this, a slot management system was introduced in late spring 2019 by the veterinary control authority and DAKOSY, a software company providing the Port of Hamburg with logistical software systems. The introduced digital slot system has enabled the veterinary control authority to allocate inspection ap-pointments according to existing staff capacities and customer needs. Fixed time slots for inspection can be booked online by truck drivers, allowing them to avoid waiting times and helping the veterinary control authority to reduce traffic. With fixed appointments, truck drivers no longer have to enqueue, with their engines running. Traffic jams and emissions can be reduced.
Since its introduction in late spring 2019, the introduced slot management sys-tem has not been binding for truck drivers. In practice, however, priority is given to those truck drivers using the slot management system for scheduling ap-pointments. Today, the large majority of truck drivers makes use of the system.
Resources needed
Overall, EUR 38,000 were invested to implement the slot management system. Additionally, EUR 1,100 are spent every month for IT support to keep the system running. Eight workdays were needed to prepare and implement the system.
Evidence of success
No qualified data are available to estimate the CO2 emissions saved by the slot management system. However, after implementing the system, long waiting times and tailbacks have not been observed any longer by the veterinary control authority. It can be assumed that less traffic jams have also made for truck emissions savings.
Difficulties encountered
Initially, logistics stakeholders criticised the slot system would not function properly. By now, it is widely accepted. For the future, technical alignments are needed, allowing the system to be used only by those truck drivers subject to veterinary control requirements, to avoid erroneous entries.
Potential for learning or transfer
The slot system for veterinary inspection was implemented in a particular local setting, possibly hampering a transfer somewhat. Unlike other ports where control authorities are located directly at the terminals and traffic flows can be organised together with the terminal operator, inspection points in Hamburg are located outside the terminals. Here, an individual system had to be developed and refined for veterinary inspection procedures. It might differ from more collaborative systems needed in other ports. Secondly, the slot system was implemented within the framework of an existing IT infrastructure tailored to the local needs in the Port of Hamburg. Whether these factors impede a transfer to other ports is to be assessed on a case-by-case basis.
Generally, the idea of a digital slot system to reduce traffic jams shows strong potentials for saving CO2 emissions and seems adaptable to other ports. Parts of the knowledge developed in Hamburg might well be used by other ports.
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Tags: Climate change, Digitalisation, Emissions, Green, Ports, Transport
