We have goods trapped—captive—in the swarm of blockages on the rail network. For those still being transported by road, there's no option to switch to rail, because there's neither the necessary capacity nor adequate service. And when they do decide to move by road, they encounter a major disruption on the country's main highway, the AP7 southbound, forcing them to scramble to find alternative routes where no one dares to confirm anything—not when, how, or where they'll arrive. Every day, drivers, planners, logistics managers, and operators must search for impossible solutions to deal with the mess they've found themselves in.
We have a logistics network managed by highly talented and dedicated people who go to great lengths to ensure everything runs smoothly despite encountering a complex operational framework, generated by decisions—or inactions—of regulators, governments, administrations, and infrastructure managers, who project ideas from a laboratory far removed from the reality that materializes.
The daily movement of goods reflects a country's industrial vitality, the lifeblood that keeps its productive economy running. But who cares? Goods are a nuisance. Goods don't speak, they don't complain, they lack rights, and they don't vote, unlike people. Does anyone advocate for goods? They bother us when they travel by truck on the highway, and also in the city. It's always necessary to move trucks aside to prioritize the passage of private vehicles, but we want the product to arrive on time and be available on the store shelf when we need it. How can this contradiction be reconciled?
We need a national pact to protect goods, recognizing them as assets of industrial interest even while in transit. This pact must become a cornerstone of a new sustainability—not only environmental, but also social, ethical, and resilient—so that, together with transporters, the flow of goods can continue uninterrupted and cease to be the scapegoat for all the inefficiencies and externalities stemming from the political system and infrastructure managers.
We also need to create continuous freight corridors. It is essential to define strategic transport routes that cross the territory and receive priority attention, with reliable operational solutions, so that in the event of any disruption, the first response is never to automatically halt them. These corridors must guarantee the continuity of the flow, just as is done with private vehicles when, during return traffic, lanes are opened in the opposite direction. In this way, the AP-7 could have an operational southbound lane using the uphill lane: even if traffic were slower, the flow would not stop, and we would avoid the informational and traffic chaos that drivers and planners suffer. Also, in situations of protest or blockades of main roads, freight drivers must be able to exercise their right to travel and not be treated as expendable, relegated to shoulders or parking lots while waiting to be allowed to resume their work. Drivers are responsible professionals who accompany the goods to their destination and who suffer, along with them, that constant waste of logistical efforts, which translates into lost hours and very high economic costs.
It is also essential that trucks be transported by rail. Rail freight corridors on strategic transport arteries are an urgent necessity to decongest the road network and save thousands of hours of unproductive driving. Continuing to postpone this scenario is to consciously acknowledge that we have a deficient rail system.
From the Global Shippers' Alliance (GSA), we have promoted the Global Manifesto of Commodity Rights (Bill of Cargo RightsThis document establishes the principles and guarantees that should protect them so they can continue generating wealth in the territories they transit through, without being penalized by the logistics system itself. Just as manufacturing companies that contract transport voluntarily demonstrate ethical, sustainable, and resilient logistics practices through Responsible Shipper (RSS) certification, managers and policymakers should take note that governing and managing also involves making commitments, demonstrating them, and guaranteeing genuine, ethical, and operational transparency.
