Stakeholder Contributions to Container Port Capacity: A Survey of Port Authorities

Abstract

Given recent concerns about

A Process Model for Cooperative Risk Management in Seaports

“…An essential aspect related to the complexity of seaports is the fact that they have a wide range of stakeholders. Stakeholders, such as port authorities, terminal operators, customs, and government ministries, use heterogeneous business information systems, and the integration of these systems presents a challenge [19]. Seaport stakeholders themselves have varying objectives, and accordingly they prioritise different port activities [20].…”

Evaluating Capacity Utilization Options for US West Coast Container Ports

“…Ports enable low-cost, rapid transport of goods critical to global supply chains. Yet previous research has demonstrated insufficient network-wide port capacity planning (Maloni and Jackson 2005b), which will increase lead times and subsequent pipeline and safety stock inventory costs. As an extreme example, a two-week labor lockout in 2002 at US West Coast ports disrupted 300,000 shipments (Gooley and Cooke 2002) at an estimated economic cost of $1 billion per day (Keane 2004).…”

“…In 2009 US ports handled more than 37 million twenty foot equivalent unit (TEU) containers (American Association of Port Authorities 2009), carrying more than $500 billion in goods. System-wide port infrastructure capacity challenges, however, have caused cargo congestion problems in the past decade (Bernstein 2006;Maloni and Jackson 2005a). Although weak economic conditions in recent years have temporarily alleviated congestion concerns, the looming rebound in trade growth without proactive investment in national port and transportation infrastructure will likely again lead to strained port capacity (US Chamber of Commerce 2008; US Department of Transportation Maritime Administration 2007; "US Ports Expand Capacity to Meet Growing Demand" 2010).…”

“…Additionally, maritime cargo movements rely on the tactical integration of an extensive network of stakeholders such as port authorities, terminal operators, labor organizations, and ocean, rail, and truck carriers. Such stakeholders retain sometimes conflicting objectives (Maloni and Jackson 2007) and do not equitably share in the costs and benefits of capacity expansion. Without an aggregate quantification of the costs and benefits of US port capacity expansion options across the entire network, future cargo congestion and subsequent effects on supply chains remain highly uncertain.…”

“…The pace of port capacity expansion has not necessarily matched volume growth, however, and both practitioners and researchers warn of worsening capacity problems (Bernstein 2006;Maloni and Jackson 2005b;Marine Transportation System National Advisory Council 2009; US Chamber of Commerce 2008; US Department of Transportation Maritime Administration 2007). One underlying issue is the significant capital investment required to increase port capacity (Slack 1993;Talley 2000) with recent examples including a $3-billion expansion at Long Beach (Mongelluzzo 2010b) and $600-million truck and intermodal improvements at the Port of New York and New Jersey (O'Reilly 2010).…”