Evaluation of intermodal transport chain: Case of importing tires through a China-Balkans routes

Within the context of global trade, logistics chains face the complex task of bridging significant geographic distances while simultaneously striving to increase their efficiency and sustainability. A significant portion of global logistics chains relies on maritime transport in the initial phase, followed by road, rail, or river transport in the subsequent continental phase. Road transport, however, is associated with various ecological and operational drawbacks. In contrast, intermodal transport (IT) provides an efficient solution by integrating multiple modes of transportation. The key challenge of IT applications remains the determination of the best combination of transport modes, technologies, and routes. Consequently, this paper aims to identify the most favorable alternative to the intermodal transport chain (ITC) for the import of tires from China to Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H). Since selecting the most favorable alternative to the ITC requires an analysis of conflicting objectives and criteria, the use of multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) becomes essential in addressing this challenge. The paper presents a new MCDM model that combines the fuzzy DELPHI analytical hierarchy process (fuzzy DAHP) and the fuzzy Axial-Distance-based Aggregated Measurement (fuzzy ADAM) methods. The applicability and effectiveness of the model were demonstrated and confirmed by a case study. The results indicate that the best variants are those that combine maritime, rail, and road transportation through the Port of Koper (with a ranking value of 0.339) and Rijeka (0.289), followed by the variants that combine maritime and road transportation through the same ports (0.241 and 0.222, respectively). The rest of the variants have significantly lower performances.