A branch-and-cut algorithm for the hub location and routing problem

Abstract

We study the hub location and routing problem where we decide on the location of hubs, the allocation of nodes to hubs, and the routing among the nodes allocated to the same hubs, with the aim of minimizing the total transportation cost. Each hub has one vehicle that visits all the nodes assigned to it on a cycle. We propose a mixed integer programming formulation for this problem and strengthen it with valid inequalities. We devise separation routines for these inequalities and develop a branch-and-cut algorithm which is tested on CAB and AP instances from the literature. The results show that the formulation is strong and the branch-and-cut algorithm is able to solve instances with up to 50 nodes.