railCare AG's road-rail transfer system

Project details

  • Type of initiative :
  • Périmètre : Suisse
  • Localisation : 6 route des Jeunes, 1227 Carouge
  • Date de début : décembre 2007
Description

Using its own trains and lorries, and a modular logistic system, railCare transports goods for everyday use throughout Switzerland. The company provides logistic services for unaccompanied combined transport (UCT), as well as terminal functions and tasks as operator.

The transhipment system allows rapid transfer during transport, avoiding load breaks (unloading, reorganization of goods, etc.) which are a major obstacle standing in the way of the modal shift from road to train.

The company was acquired by Coop in 2010 and offers its services to all companies seeking sustainable and innovative transport solutions, including Heineken and Emmi.

In Geneva in particular, the company serves the station of La Praille to supply the Coop shops of the canton. 

Qualitative benefits

  • 10,300 tonnes of CO2 saved in 2015 compared to conventional road transport
  • In 2015, railCare’s electric locomotives went the equivalent of 20.54 times round the Earth, or 823,178 km on Swiss railways.

Stages of the initiative

The increase in traffic around cities, and in particular the congestion of the Geneva-Lausanne section, encouraged the Coop Group to seek reliable delivery solutions.

At the same time, the Coop group is pursuing an environmental policy aimed at achieving CO2 neutrality by 2023. A number of measures have been put in place to serve this purpose, particularly in the field of deliveries for both distribution centres and shops.

The acquisition of railCare by Coop in 2010 meets both objectives by combining reliability and reduction of CO2 emissions from procurement.

Areas of activity

One of the challenges for railCare SA when it was acquired by Coop was to move from an SME structure to that of a larger company. However, Coop's experience has facilitated this process. 

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Vincent Jay

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