Optimal controlled transports with free end times subject to import/export tariffs (Q2185759)

The authors investigate some transportation plans with free end-time that minimize the transport cost induced by the generating function of a Lagrangian within a bounded domain. The primal optimal transport problem has an equivalent Eulerian formulation. A detailed problem description is given and the decision task is represented as a multi-commodity multi-period network flow problem. Exact as well as heuristic algorithms to solve instances of the presented problem are proposed. Within computational simulation experiments the proposed algorithms are evaluated and compared. Given the complexity involved, the authors produce many positive and welcome outcomes. The literature review offers a useful overview of current research and policy, and the resulting bibliography provides a very useful resource for current practitioners.