Private companies do not change their practices as quickly as necessitated by environmental challenges,
therefore a public policy for intermodal freight may be necessary. This article looks at some examples of railway
and waterway transport services and considers their impacts as well as the need for public investment. Another key
element of public policy promoting modal shift is a successful land use policy reserving land for logistics.
Transport optimisation has a spatial dimension, as the siting of warehouses and distribution centres directly
impacts metropolitan truck traffic (Dablanc & Rakotonarivo, 2010).