PortStudies
PortStudies
PortStudies
Institutional plasticity and path dependence in seaports
The institutional plasticity and path dependence in seaports is the theme of a new port study by PortEconomics co-directors Theo Notteboom and Peter de Langen, in collaboration with Wouter Jacobs, associate member of PortEconomics. The study deals with path dependence in seaport governance. A central notion in this respect is lock-in. Economic geographers have recently started to reconsider the deterministic perspective on lock-in and developed the concept of institutional plasticity. Such plasticity is the result of actions of actors to...
PortStudies
Trajectories of change in ports: the role of institutional frameworks
A collection of port studies that explore the changing relationship between institutional frameworks and the development of transportation nodes are included in the recently published special issue of the journal Journal of Transport Geography. The theme of this issue of the prestigious scholarly journal (vol. 27, 2013) is "Institutional Frameworks and the Transformation of Transport Nodes", with PortEconomics co-director Thanos Pallis, associate member Adolf Ng, and Prof. Peter Hall (Simon Fraser, Vancouver CA) acting as guest editors. As...
PortStudies
Investigating development of dry ports in Brazil: lessons learnt
The development of dry ports in Brazil is the theme of a new port study by PortEconomics co-director Thanos Pallis, in collaboration with Adolf Ng, associate member of PortEconomics, and Flavio Padilha. Dry ports are associated with enhanced efficiency. Relieving seaport congestion without (significant) capacity expansion, dry ports are essential elements in the competitive position of seaports, as they acted to facilitate access to (overlapping) hinterlands. However, those focusing on how institutions could strengthen (or dissipate) the...
PortStudies
Containerised freight: distribution in North America and Europe
Containerised freight distribution in North America and Europe is the theme discussed by PortEconomics members Theo Notteboom and Jean-Paul Rodrigue in a chapter published in the edited volume Handbook of Global Logistics: Transportation in International Supply Chains. The book is now published by Springer. Theo and Jean-Paul argue that it is rather uncommon for country pairs to be directly connected by shipping services. This is because the concept of "intermediacy" is increasingly important in regional or global freight...
PortStudies
Port performance management system: socio-economic impacts
Their latest research on the the development of the European performance management system for seaports and in particular its application to socio-economic impacts, is the subject of the research presented by PortEconomics member Michael Dooms, along with Steven de Schepper, during this year's annual conference of the International Association of Maritime Economists - IAME 2012, that was held in Taipei, Taiwan. Performance indicators on socio-economic impacts of seaport activities are often used to support and strengthen the societal...
PortStudies
The impact of slow-steaming on container shipping networks
PortEconomics member Francesco Parola along with Claudio Ferrari and Alessio Tei, presented their latest research on the economic impact of facing the economic crisis by cutting costs and its impact of slow-steaming on container shipping networks, during the annual conference of the International Association of Maritime Economists - IAME 2012, that was held in Taipei, Taiwan. The research focuses on the impact of the commercial speed reduction for saving bunker cost, on shipping service patterns. In particular, the manuscript analyses...
PortStudies
The economic impact of river tourism on ports
PortEconomics member Michael Dooms along with Mitchell van Ballen and PortEconomics associate member Elvira Haezendonck, presented their latest research on the economic impact of river tourism on ports: the case of Brussels, during the annual conference of the International Association of Maritime Economists - IAME 2012, that was held in Taipei, Taiwan. River cruises and events on inland ships have been enjoying a growing popularity. The economic benefits that emerge from these forms of river tourism, through the expenditures of...
PortStudies
Gateway & hinterland dynamics: southern African container ports
The gateway and the hinterlands dynamics of African container port system is the subject of the recent study of PortEconomics co-director Theo Notteboom alond with Darren Fraser that published in the latest issue of African Journal of Business Management. The Southern African container port system features a diverse range of different port types and sizes from five African countries. Collectively, ports in this region constituted a significant 40% market share of all container traffic through the African continent in 2005. One of the...
PortStudies