Essay Example on Inland Ports

Inland ports are specific locations developed to serve intermodal transportation networks. The ports are located along rail lines and usually provided intermodal transfer facilities (Segu et al., 2016). Also, the ports offer international trade processing as well as other process involved in international trade. Inland ports help solve the challenges resulting from maritime or seaports. Maritime ports are developed around strategically along sea access. These ports fail to offer intermodal transfer facilities. The maritime ports also lack the space required for intermodal transfer which is necessary to facilitate international trade. Inland port could be established to solve these challenges. The inland ports are located in a strategic geographical site where it can be easily accessible by rail shuttles from the maritime ports to create an efficient distribution of cargo. Inland ports offer an adequate supply of carrier services, sufficient demand for freight transportation, community support as well as private/public capital funding. Inland ports also reduce costs of shipping regarding distance and detention, offer customer proximity to manufacturing, more space, intermodal connectivity services, fast service delivery, specialized equipment and lower prices (Segu et al., 2016). A variety of logistics services, i.e., warehousing, brokerages, freight forwarding, break bulk facilities and repackaging devices. Inland ports boost the economy of a region through the creation of employment opportunities. The ports also increase the revenue thus increasing the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the area (Segu et al., 2016).

Hub and Spoke Concept

Inland ports provide an integrated transportation and distribution system (Wei, Sheng & Lee, 2017). This system supplements the hub and spoke concept of the maritime industry. The integrated transportation and distribution system ensures that there is a seamless movement of cargo to from the point of origin, i.e., the tips of the spokes, to the central processing facility, i.e., the hub and finally to the end destination. The shipment can be either warehoused or distributed directly. Inland ports serve as regional hubs and can, therefore, be referred to as smaller hub which serves the purpose of warehousing and distribution (Wei et al., 2017). The goods and commodities can then be distributed by road, rail and other modes of transportation thus simplifying the logistics for the region and granting more direct access to maritime ports for international trade (Wei et al., 2017).

References

Segui, X., Puig, M., Quintieri, E., Wooldridge, C., & Darbra, R. M. (2016). New environmental performance baseline for inland ports: a benchmark for the European inland port sector. Environmental Science & Policy, 58, 29-40.

Wei, H., Sheng, Z., & Lee, P. T. W. (2017). The role of dry port in hub-and-spoke network under Belt and Road Initiative. Maritime Policy & Management, 1-18.