A number of documents developed by the European Union, relating to transport development strategies, indicate the directions for transport development and its harmful impacts on the population and the natural environment. Transport systems that minimize pollutant emissions are being promoted: rail and water transport, new transport technologies, and organizational principles. The general goal of sustainable transport policy is to create conditions for the efficient, safe, and economically effective, as well as socially, economically, and spatially sound movement of people and goods within the limits set by the natural resources available for such activities and the capacity of the environment to absorb pollutants.
Historically, the Oder has played a significant role in transport between Silesia and Szczecin. It served as the hinterland for the Szczecin-Świnoujście port complex. Despite many navigational limitations, it enables the transport of bulk, hazardous, and oversized cargo. Along the axis of the Oder, rail transport is a competitive system to water transport.
The article presents a preliminary analysis of the costs of rail and inland water transport for the Silesia – Szczecin-Świnoujście Port Complex route.
Oder Waterway
The Oder Waterway is a very heterogeneous, though practically the only, waterway in Poland with significant transport importance. It is characterized by diverse hydrotechnical structures, varying technical parameters, and generally a significant degree of wear and tear of the facilities. The section limiting navigation is the stretch from Brzeg Dolny to the mouth of the Lusatian Neisse. The Gliwice Canal and the canalized Oder are characterized by established hydrotechnical parameters. A constant transit depth of 1.8 m is assumed. This allows for the operation of a fleet with a draft of T = 1.7 m. The nominal draft of currently operated pushed barges is 1.6 m or 1.55 m. The navigation season on the canalized Oder and the Gliwice Canal lasts from March 15 to December 15. The winter break is used for repair and modernization work. The navigation season on the free-flowing Oder lasts from January 1 to December 31. Breaks result from icing periods and low or high water levels. Data from the Regional Water Management Board (RZGW) in Wrocław for the period 1980-2007 indicate that the section limiting the transit depth is the stretch below Brzeg Dolny. A transit depth of over 1.4 m occurs for about 45% of the navigation season.
Based on data from RZGW Szczecin for the period 1982-2007, for specific sections, the transit depths in % relative to the navigation season, calculated from January 1 to December 31, were:
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section from the mouth of the Lusatian Neisse to the mouth of the Warta: above 1.4 m – 52.8%, permissible navigation – 85.6%
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section from the mouth of the Warta to Hohensaten: above 1.4 m – 70%, permissible navigation – 87%.
A factor limiting navigation on the free-flowing Oder is the closure of the shipping route due to icing. The periods of route closure on the Oder due to icing have not decreased over the last 27 years; on the contrary, an increase in the number of days with icing is observed. As a percentage for the analyzed 27-year period, the icing period is 8.35%.
Capacity of the ODW. Capacity is the amount of cargo that can be transported on a given waterway during the navigation season. Capacity depends on: navigational conditions – durations of specific transit depths, technical parameters of the fleet, parameters and operating system of hydrotechnical facilities on the waterway (24-hour navigation, limited number of hours per day), transport organization system – motor barges, classic pushed system, integrated system, and the duration of the navigation season.
Capacity was determined based on the following assumptions:
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lock operating time: 16 or 24 hours
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average duration of the navigation season: 240 days
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basic fleet: BIZON pusher unit + 2 x BP500, cargo capacity at nominal draft T = 1.6 m is 944 t
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two lock chambers active on the Gliwice Canal, separate locking of individual barges of the unit
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integrated operation system: barges permanently connected to the pusher
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for the free-flowing Oder, the average draft during the season is 1.4 m.
For individual sections of the ODW, the capacities for 16 and 24 hours of operation per day are respectively:
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Gliwice Canal – 3.6/5.05 million tons/year
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Canalized Oder – 5.8/8.14 million tons/year
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Free-flowing Oder – 16.35/24.56 million tons/year.
The factor determining the capacity of a canalized waterway or canal is the lock with the longest single locking operation time. For the Gliwice Canal, this is the Łabędy lock, and for the canalized Oder, the lock in Brzeg Dolny. If the unit is operated at a draft other than nominal (smaller), the unit’s cargo capacity decreases. For a draft of T = 1.4 m, the capacity is 796 tons, and at a draft of T = 1.2 m – 644 tons. Capacity can also be influenced by the transshipment capabilities of river ports. Historically, two ports were of significant importance: in Gliwice and Kędzierzyn-Koźle. Currently, only the port in Gliwice is in operation. Its transshipment capabilities ensure full utilization of the Gliwice Canal’s capacity. The port in Kędzierzyn-Koźle is currently inactive, and all transshipment equipment has been dismantled due to its technical condition.
The article comes from the magazine “Logistyka” 5/2009.