Advancing Smart Sustainable Seaports: Auction-Based Truck Appointment System for Automated Container Terminal

This study proposes alternative solutions to the container pick-up reservation problem involving container terminals and drayage operators by introducing two variations of a modified auction mechanism—cost-based and service-oriented—into the terminal’s truck appointment system, with the First Come First Served (FCFS) scheme as a baseline. Each scheme is evaluated using key performance indicators relevant to terminals, drayage operators, and the environment, such as yard crane utilization, container retrieval/service time, storage cost/dwelling time, reservation costs, appointment tardiness, truck turnaround time, congestion, and CO2 emissions. Results indicate that retrieval-cost-based schemes achieve the lowest container retrieval costs, while storage-cost-based schemes maintain consistent container dwelling times; service-based schemes excel in minimizing appointment tardiness but require more reservation communication cycles. All proposed mechanisms significantly enhance environmental outcomes, improving truck turnaround time, queue length, and CO2 emissions by at least 85% compared to FCFS. This study highlights the critical need for decentralized coordination to effectively integrate the interests of business actors, emphasizing the importance of aligning stakeholder objectives for overall system enhancement.