Compare and Contrast Essay on North American and European Freight Systems

Introduction

In the two regions, most systems, for example, freight system, global trade, and policy are seemingly alike. However, there are several aspects of the systems mentioned earlier that differ. The paper compares and contrasts the global policy, freight transport system and globalized policy implications between North America and Europe.

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Global Trade

In Europe, the major global trade is EU while in North America, it is NAFTA. The two trades are similar in that they offer trade liberalization for all the countries who are registered members. Another similarity is that both of them consist of trade barrier removal as they both offer tariff and quota eliminations for their member nations. The most significant difference between the two is that EU has a supranational institution which is not found in NAFTA. For instance, EU does not have court justice, commission thus excluding competition rules in the dispute decision procedure (Law Teacher, 2015). Additionally, European Union has anti-trust policies that are not in NAFTA.

Freight Transportation Systems

The global freight systems in both nations have impacted by the convergence that is seen regarding terminals, technology, infrastructure, and modes. Both nations are viewed as significant markets that share commonalities in the form of reliable import and advanced freight transport systems. However, the two are different in how their logistics take place over their territories. The most significant difference is seen in the form of networks and intermodal railway terminals between the two countries (Jean & Notteboom, 2015). Research shows that the North American transport systems are dependent on a paradigm shift which is also known as the Big Bang Approaches. As compared to North America, Europe, has a policy-making process which is incremental in nature (Rodrigue & Notteboom, 2010). While the European rail service is seen to be short distance rail service, North America possesses a long distance rail freight (Rodrigue & Notteboom, 2012). In Western Europe, organizations and companies prefer to use a direct delivery without the use of a distribution Centre as it is the case in North America. Additionally, in North America, gateway locations are near the primary market while the European gateways are substantially linked to a logistical platform. Finally, as much as the two countries make use of rail freight service, Europe is seen to be having a prevalent use of rail service as compared to North America where most companies use large tracks and cars for freight services.

Global Policy Implications

The most significant similarity in the global policy implications between Europe and North America is the sovereignty of nation's acknowledgment. In both regions there exists the similarity of capitalist globalization. The above effect shows that the global politics has become prevalently fragmented as it is clear due to the fall of several unions and empires (Vincent, 1996). An example of a failed union is the Soviet Unions.

Reflection

The above research has proved to be very educative. The reason behind this conclusion (educative) is that it helped me in understanding how the global aspects can get compared and contrasted. The comparison gave me insights on how the three universal elements world within the two given nations. It is through this research that I managed to read more about global aspects not only of the said nation but also of other countries like Australia. Though it was a little bit tiresome, it was worth all the energy and sacrifice.

Reference

Jean, R., & Notteboom, T. (2015). Comparative North American and European Gateway Logistics: The Regionalism of Freight Distribution. Institute of Transport and Maritime, 116-174

LawTeacher. (2015, April 25). Advantages Disadvantages And Comparisons EU And NAFTA. Retrieved from LawTeacher: https://www.lawteacher.net/free-law-essays/international-law/advantages-disadvantages-and-comparisons-eu-and-nafta-international-law-essay.php

Rodrigue, J. P., & Notteboom, T. (2010). Comparative North American and European gateway logistics: the regionalism of freight distribution. Journal of Transport Geography, 18(4), 497-507.

Rodrigue, J. P., & Notteboom, T. (2012). Dry ports in European and North American intermodal rail systems: Two of a kind?. Research in Transportation Business & Management, 5, 4-15.

Vincent, F. (1996, June 14). The Policy Implications of Global Economic Inequity. Retrieved from Mount Holyoke College: https://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/inequity.htm