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Network Flow Models: Use in Rural Freight Transportation Analysis and a Comparison with Linear Programming

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 April 2015

Stephen Fuller  and
Chiyyarath Shanmugham
Stephen Fuller
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural Economics, Texas A&M University, College Station
Chiyyarath Shanmugham
Affiliation:
Department of Industrial Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station
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Extract

The logistical efficiency and viability of the rural transportation system is a growing concern of agricultural producers, transportation regulators, and policy makers. Railroad facility limitations, abandonment of railroad track, deterioration of the rural road system, and changing transportation rate structures are examples of issues for which solutions and evaluations are required. To plan and evaluate transportation alternatives, decision makers need a research tool with an ability to answer numerous “what if” types of questions. Often the model must include a spatial and/or temporal dimension, in addition to microscopic detail of the transportation and marketing system. Therefore, large models are needed and efficiency of computer solution procedures becomes a relevant consideration. The flexibility of the research tool to include necessary system realism may also become an important concern.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics , Volume 10 , Issue 2 , December 1978 , pp. 183 - 188
Copyright
Copyright © Southern Agricultural Economics Association 1978

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