The role of intermodal transport in port regionalisation

Abstract

The port regionalisation concept extended earlier spatial models of port development with a focus on institutional relationships governing the complexity of inland connections. The concept accounts for the fact that modern ports operate in an increasingly complex and sophisticated transport and logistics environment, embedded within multi-scalar planning regimes. This paper addresses the role of intermodal transport in port regionalisation by reviewing the literature on the three core aspects of the concept: intermodal terminals, inland logistics and collective action problems.Results reveal that inland terminals developed by landside actors often experience a conflict of strategy with port actors (either port authorities or terminal operators). Port actors have difficulty acting beyond the port perimeter but some port terminal operators have begun to demonstrate successful investments in inland terminals in order to manage their container throughput more strategically. Inland logistics markets tend to be centralised and focus heavily on domestic flows, thus the efficiency of intermodal freight services is challenged by the need to combine port and domestic movements which have different product, route and equipment characteristics. Collective action is an arena where port actors can be influential due to the role of informal networking in managing freight corridors; however, institutional constraints limit their ability to act directly.The findings in this paper elucidate challenges to the ability of ports to control or capture hinterlands through the strategies of integration that the port regionalisation concept proposes. The paper concludes by proposing a research agenda developing from recent institutional adaptations of port actors as a result of these challenges.