This Round Table publication discusses the policy and regulatory challenges posed by the rapidly changing port environment. The sector has changed tremendously in recent decades with technological and organisational innovation and a powerful expansion of trade. Although ports serve hinterlands that now run deep into continents, competition among ports is increasingly intense and their bargaining power in the supply chain has consequently weakened. Greater port throughput is meeting with increasing resistance from local communities because of pollution and congestion. In addition, local regulation is warranted but made difficult by the distribution of bargaining power among stakeholders. Higher-level authorities could develop more effective policies.
Table of contents:
SUMMARY OF DISCUSSIONS The Relationship between Seaports and the Intermodal Hinterland in Light of Global Supply Chains: European Challenges by T. Notteboom, Belgium 1. Introduction: Gateways and Hinterlands 2. Global Supply Chains, Port Selection and Hinterland Connections 3. Trade Patterns, Distribution Networks and Locational Shifts in Europe 4. Throughput Dynamics in the European Container Port System 5. Key Hinterland Developments for the Competition in and Between Gateway Regions 6. The Role of Relevant Actors in the Structuring of Hinterland Networks 7. Conclusions and Avenues for Future Research Responding to Increasing Port-Related Freight Volumes: Lessons from Los Angeles/Long beachand other US Ports and Hinterlands by Genevieve Giuliano and Thomas O'Brien, USA 1. Introduction 2. Trends in Port-Related Trade and Impacts on US Metro Areas 3. The Los Angeles Region: Changing Responses to Port-Related Trade 4. Two Examples: AB2650 and OFFPeak 5. Conclusions Assuring Hinterland Access: The Role of Port Authorities by P. De Langen, the Netherlands 1. Introduction 2. The Role of Landlord Port Authorities 3. The Role of PAs in Enhancing Co-ordination 4. Port Hinterlands 5. The Role of PAs in Improving Hinterland Access 6. Conclusions The Impact of Hinterland Access: Conditions on Rivalry between Ports by A. Zhang, Canada 1. Introduction 2. Background 3. An Analytical Model 4. Case Examples 5. Conclusion and Future Research LIST OF PARTICIPANTS