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Container shipping gives a rise of international trade since the 1960s. Based on navigation data start from the mid-1990s to 2016, this paper empirically analyses the spatial pattern of China’s international maritime linkages along the “twenty-first-century Maritime Silk Road”. We interpret such evolutionary dynamics in terms of growth, hierarchical diffusion and networking phases. Networking is a new stage of the evolution of the port system, which is approached based on the graph theory, complex network methods and geomatics, the paper discusses the networking’s basic characteristics: multi-hub spatial agglomeration, the connection of the network develops across space, functional differentiation and a division of labour appear among ports. Our results show that, while the scope of China’s maritime linkages had expanded overtime, more foreign ports become connected to the “Maritime Silk Road”. In addition, the external linkages of domestic ports tend to be dispersed, reflecting upon the decline of Pearl River Delta ports and the rise of Yangtze River Delta ports, with mixed evidence for the Bohai Rim region. Lastly, the analysis underlines the emergence of a polycentric shipping system, from the Hong Kong dominance to the more diversified Shanghai/Ningbo/Shenzhen configuration. Academic and managerial implications are included. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academic research on port competitiveness has so far focused on the identification of the drivers of port competitiveness and their measurement. This paper argues that the port competitiveness and its drivers are significantly affected by major changes in maritime industry, which scholars have not sufficiently addressed. Therefore, the manuscript explores the multidimensional nature of “port competitiveness” by conducting a systematic literature review of leading peer-reviewed international journals, between the 1983 and 2014 time frame. The analysis allows a profound understanding and a categorisation of the main drivers of port competitiveness. Main findings present a hierarchy of key drivers and suggest that major industry transformations moderate the influential role of traditional drivers and reshuffle their relative salience. The study also identifies some unexplored research areas for future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The feasibility of implementing short sea shipping (SSS) between two specific ports has been typically approached on the operative level, in terms of time and cost for a specific origin–destination pair. This paper focuses on the strategic level. Particularly, its goal is to study the potential of SSS in different industrial sectors by analysing their freight-distribution strategies. To achieve the objective, some standard freight-distribution strategies are defined based on the requirements of the industry, the demand and the product being transported. The information is complemented with a survey of more than 100 Spanish companies distributing internationally. As a result it is concluded that there are economies of scale related to the size of the carrier (the ship) and its capacity to absorb the variability in demand. This potential increases with the cargo value. Additionally, a framework of supply/distribution chains is provided which can help to identify potential customers/sectors and the feasibility of new potential shipping lines. The value of this paper resides in its approach (strategic, instead of operational/tactical), and the solid groundwork point provided for future researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The challenge in this paper is to examine to what extent increased barge transport offers an alternative for road transport. To increase barge transport, innovations are needed. The central issue is as follows. Which barge innovations can be implemented successfully? The paper reviews the most important academic literature (some of which is scarce) on barge transport. The literature has been used as input to evaluate the potential of barge innovations for broad market‐based introduction. Furthermore, the innovations have been evaluated on their potential to enlarge the barge market. The analysis leads to a number of conclusions. The most promising innovations for a successful broad‐based market introduction are the catalyst and filter systems Z‐drive, Tempomaat, air‐lubricated barges, model shift scans, Distrivaart, dedicated barges and sea–river transport. Besides the innovation having a success potential in terms of broad‐based market introduction, it is important that the innovation enlarges the market for barge transport. Only three of the potential successful innovations (Distrivaart, dedicated barges and sea–river transport) also show the potential to enlarge the market for barge transport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The stringent ship emission regulations under IMO's (International Maritime Organization) MARPOL Annex VI are a main driver to consider liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a ship fuel. Research into LNG as a marine fuel saw a strong growth in recent years, but no study has analyzed in a systematic way the level of convergence among the findings presented in the wide range of studies. In order to fill this gap, this paper seeks to perform a systematic review to synthesize the findings of 33 published studies on the use of LNG as a ship fuel. The aim is not only to obtain a much broader understanding of the current perspectives and challenges for applying LNG as a bunker for ship propulsion, but also to identify the gaps and weak points in the literature which could suggest future research. Moreover, given the output of the synthesis, the paper presents an extensive decision-making framework for shipowners when deciding on a fuel switch for their fleet from conventional oils to LNG in order to achieve a level of conceptual development beyond that attained in individual studies. In addition, the study also identifies the important role of ports in facilitating and encouraging the large-scale adoption of LNG in the maritime industry. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper explores the external costs of domestic container transportation in Taiwan by analysing the origin and destination of current container cargoes. After reviewing an extensive literature survey of methods of external cost, a comparison of external costs between trucking and short sea shipping (SSS) by corridor is made by using a model developed in this paper. Based on the findings that external costs of SSS are considerably lower than truck transport and can be a viable alternative to current domestic container cargo transportation, we discuss the significance and managerial implications of SSS from the perspective of green logistics. In so doing, a top-down approach is employed for developing government policies, which aim to not only reduce the external costs of domestic container transportation but also promote SSS in Taiwan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online retailing is growing fast and claims are being made about its positive environmental impact relative to traditional shopping, particularly by the retailers themselves. There is, however, little concrete evidence to support the claims. Whilst there exists some research into the passenger travel implications of e-shopping, this paper seeks to analyse the issues involved in online shopping from both a passenger and freight transport perspective. The objectives of the paper are first, to set out the complex transport relationships involved in online shopping and in particular the interaction between the passenger and freight aspects and second, to shed some light on the environmental impact of online shopping. It concludes that as things currently stand, it cannot be stated with any degree of certainty that clicks are any more environmentally responsible than bricks. The paper is conceptual in nature and is the pre-cursor to an empirical study of the issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forty years ago on the eve of the colonial period, Edward Taaffe, Richard Morrill and Peter Gould published a paper on transport in the developing countries that during the 1970s and 1980s became widely accepted as a model of the transport development during colonial and post-colonial rules. On the basis of data from Ghana and Nigeria, they presented a phase model of how the transport system during the colonial period had become increasingly focused on the largest national export ports and foresaw the development after independence of an integrated transport network more supportive of national development. The present paper attempts, on the basis of a detailed study of the last 40 years' development of transport, primarily in Ghana, but supplemented by similar data from Zimbabwe and East Africa, to see to what extent their model has held true in reality. Unfortunately, it has not. Contrary to expectations, the concentration of the export flows has continued, not through port concentration as before, but through the concentration of the shipping industry. There have also been few signs of the integrated network that Taaffe et al. expected or hoped would develop. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is essential that transport infrastructures are protected against events which cause their failure. At an optimal level of protection, the sum of protection costs and expected residual damages following from disruptions will be minimized. In most cases however, this optimal level is not achieved because infrastructure protection is susceptible to various market and government failures. This brings us to the question who (a private or public actor) should do how much (the level of protection and intervention). This question is addressed in the present paper. The starting point of the paper is the Directive of the European Council on the identification and designation of European Critical Infrastructures. We review the protection of critical waterborne transport infrastructures from an economic perspective. The review is based on a literature study and several interviews with Critical Infrastructure experts. For the studied infrastructures, we have identified causes and effects of their failure and examined the private–public roles in protecting them. Considering the market and government failures which occur in such configuration of roles, we propose several changes. We conclude that from a national policy perspective there are two important routes: (1) reinforcement of private sector roles among others by defining liabilities and providing information on risks and (2) strengthening of supra-national collaboration via improving and standardizing regulations, cost-sharing initiatives and penalty systems. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Empty container management deals with repositioning empty containers at minimum costs while fulfilling empty container demands. Due to imbalances in trade, some areas have a surplus of empty containers, while others have a shortage. Therefore, empty containers need to be repositioned globally to make sure that sufficient empty containers are available everywhere. Besides, empty containers need to be repositioned regionally between shippers, consignees, inland depots, terminals and ports in order to fulfil demand. In this paper, the focus is on the empty container management problem at a regional level. The problem is described in detail and opportunities for reducing empty container movements are discussed. Decisions to be taken at each planning level (strategic, tactical and operational) are described, and for each planning level, a detailed overview of planning models proposed in the literature is presented. Planning models considering decisions at several planning levels are discussed as well. Finally, interesting opportunities for future research are identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been acknowledged that logistics is a driving force that shapes the integration of the transport chain. This paper argues that while the liner shipping industry exhibits increased horizontal integration, its vertical integration remains limited. A clear distinction is drawn between freight logistics, container logistics and vessel logistics. Freight logistics is defined as part of the supply chain process, the focus of which is the goods being transported. The purpose of container logistics is to optimize the movements of the containers themselves, an operation that is directly related to vessel logistics which is concerned with maximizing vessel utilization. The paper demonstrates that shipping lines have to find the correct balance between these three types of logistics. Their interest in vertical integration is primarily because the management of container logistics provides direct support to vessel logistics. Their involvement in freight logistics remains unclear and uncertain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The central place of transhipment in rail transport solutions and the lack of successful innovations is the focus in this paper. Based on a questionnaire and interviews, several conclusions can be drawn. First, the respondents value the product characteristics of the different innovations as neutral. However, there appear to be a number of ways to make the innovations more attractive (e.g. reduce uncertainty/risks, increase the compatibility and decrease the complexity). Second, the respondents value the user requirements of the innovations concerned as neutral. However, several different opportunities can be identified to make the innovations more attractive on the user requirements side (e.g. flexibility). Third, concerning the user requirements, the costs of the innovations are perceived as high. This probably is one of the major barriers to the successful adoption of the innovations in the rail transhipment market. In this market, costs are very important and cannot always be recovered through charging higher prices. A last conclusion is that user requirements can be analysed from two points of view: first, the user of the innovation is the terminal operator and the innovation must meet his criteria; and second, the actual user is the rail transport company (and ultimately the shipper of the freight). The innovations are then evaluated on their increase in performance for the total intermodal transport solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the effectiveness of policy measures aimed at triggering a modal shift in the freight transport market. The analysis is based on the inventory‐theoretic framework that studies modal choice from a business logistics viewpoint. The crux of the inventory‐theoretic approach lies in the fact that explicit attention is paid to all costs in the supply chain that are affected by the choice of transport mode. After a brief literature review on the inventory‐theoretic framework, the framework is used to calculate the market shares of different freight transport modes for a hypothetical transport market. In a second step, the impact of some policy measures on the market shares of the transport modes is calculated. By way of illustration, the analysis is applied to the market for container transport from a seaport to its hinterland. It is shown that a combination of certain policy measures can lead to significant modal shifts from road transport to intermodal transport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A comprehensive review of the inland maritime transport system of Greece before the application of full liberalization in the provision of transport services and the lifting of cabotage restrictions that existed until 2002 is presented. The review is made both in terms of the quantity of the demand and supply sides as well as in terms of the quality of the offered services. The paper also examines all the elements that affect the operation of the system in a way that lends itself to a comparison of the 'before' situation (presented here) with an 'after' situation, which will be evaluated in Part 2 of the paper after the relevant data are available once the new system has been in operation for a few years. The paper begins with a description of the fully liberalized system that was put in operation in November 2002, and the elements that have changed. It then gives a picture of the whole system (based on data for 1999-2001) in terms of: (1) passenger and freight flows and their temporal variations; (2) the characteristics of the fleet; (3) the characteristics of the port infrastructure; and (4) the levels of services offered (frequencies, travel times, reliability of travel times, congestion at ports, form of the network). Interviews were undertaken with experts working on the Greek inland maritime transport systems at either the operation of the services (shipping companies) or on its administration (ministries and supervising organizations), and the interviews were supplemented by past experience from other countries and the brief experience gained from the new system. The paper first gives an overview of the expected impacts and changes that will be realized with the new system. A brief description is given of a decision support tool created as part of a consultancy study to help the Ministry of Merchant Marine in the management and monitoring of the new liberalized system and taking decisions based on European Union legislation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poland is an interesting example of a country whose transport policy is under radical modification. The operation of changing policy configuration is in accordance with economic transformation, namely from centrally planned to marketoriented economics. This paper reviews (1) the criticism of the former transport White Paper, Polityka transportowa; (2) major parliamentary documents qualifying the present approach to transport; (3) the new and completely revised approach to restructuring and privatization of railways; (4) changes in the programme of motorway construction; (5) other legislative changes in road transport; (6) ownership transformation in Polish Airlines LOT and liberalization of air-borne traffic in Europe; and (7) changes in maritime shipping. One aspect of the Polish transport policy is that the state has almost withdrawn from urban level policy development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The information-rich vessel movement data provided by the Automatic Identification System (AIS) has gained much popularity over the past decade, during which the employment of satellite-based receivers has enabled wide coverage and improved data quality. The application of AIS data has developed from simply navigation-oriented research to now include trade flow estimation, emission accounting, and vessel performance monitoring. The AIS now provides high frequency, real-time positioning and sailing patterns for almost the whole world's commercial fleet, and therefore, in combination with supplementary databases and analyses, AIS data has arguably kickstarted the era of digitisation in the shipping industry. In this study, we conduct a comprehensive review of the literature regarding AIS applications by dividing it into three development stages, namely, basic application, extended application, and advanced application. Each stage contains two to three application fields, and in total we identified seven application fields, including (1) AIS data mining, (2) navigation safety, (3) ship behaviour analysis, (4) environmental evaluation, (5) trade analysis, (6) ship and port performance, and (7) Arctic shipping. We found that the original application of AIS data to navigation safety has, with the improvement of data accessibility, evolved into diverse applications in various directions. Moreover, we summarised the major methodologies in the literature into four categories, these being (1) data processing and mining, (2) index measurement, (3) causality analysis, and (4) operational research. Undoubtedly, the applications of AIS data will be further expanded in the foreseeable future. This will not only provide a more comprehensive understanding of voyage performance and allow researchers to examine shipping market dynamics from the micro level, but also the abundance of AIS data may also open up the rather opaque aspect of how shipping companies release information to external authorities, including the International Maritime Organization, port states, scientists and researchers. It is expected that more multi-disciplinary AIS studies will emerge in the coming years. We believe that this study will shed further light on the future development of AIS studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA). Through a chronological reconstruction, the study looks at the events that lead to the official birth of the Agency in 2003 and how it developed to its current state. The conceptual framework draws from cognitive policy analysis, a French political science perspective related to new institutionalisms. This approach emphasizes the role of the actors' own representations of their sector and the ways they fit within the socioeconomic system as a whole. This highlights the evolution of the stakeholders' positions and influence throughout the development process. Findings suggest that although considerable discrepancies between European representatives and those of the shipping industry were present in the context leading to EMSA's creation, the Agency has now established a working consensus confirming a greater implication of European authorities in the regulation of international shipping. The work also suggests that a greater attention to plays of power among stakeholders and how they translate in their representations could be pertinent to strengthen research in shipping policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Port planners have to make decisions on optimal berth capacity for container port development. The main purpose of this paper is twofold. One is to review the current practices adopted by selected major ports in Asia in estimating berth and port capacities in their planning decisions. The other is to suggest a new approach to estimate the optimal capacity of a berth/port from the perspective of a national economy and to show how the traditional approach can integrate economic factors. Findings suggest that port planners should look into incurring costs of not only the construction, but also the opportunity costs of ships and cargo when deciding to use port facilities to full capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Shipping companies frequently outsource the management of their vessels. In this paper, we use data from Lloyd's Register Fairplay [(2009) IHS Fairplay World shipping encyclopaedia. Available at http://www.ihs.com/products/maritime-information/ships/world-shipping-encyclopedia.aspx?pu=1&rd=ihsfairplay_com] on 45 456 vessels belonging to 9580 different ship-owners to investigate the extent of outsourcing in shipping and to identify the key factors affecting the likelihood of outsourcing. The results of our econometric analysis indicate that ship-owners' decisions to outsource are explained by the characteristics of the vessels in question (age, type and size) and the characteristics of the ship-owner (country of domiciliation and number of vessels). In addition, a specific country effect is identified for Greek ship-owners, which is in line with the findings of previous studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shifting cargo from land-based modes to maritime transport has been a prioritized policy in many policy papers to make transport more environmental friendly. Traditional calculations of emissions per transport capacity unit have supported this. However, maritime transport may stand to loose its good environmental reputation in comparison to road transport due to (1) the sluggish processes in maritime environmental policies and the low ambition level of current regulations, (2) the much higher focus on improving the environmental efficiency of the road haulage industry, (3) the much longer economic life of vessels compared to trucks, and (4) focus on faster vessels that increase the average fuel consumption of the sea transport alternative. Through a realistic case study, the energy efficiency and emissions of alternative multimodal transport chains is presented to illustrate these points. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the possibility of increasing shipping of fruit and vegetables from Almeria (southeast of Spain) to Port Vendres-Perpignan (southeast of France). Almeria is one of the areas of vegetables production largest in the world and Perpignan is one of the most important customers of Almeria. After analysing the potential volume of shipping, we estimate a mode choice model which allows us to study the sensitivity of final clients (horticultural operators) to future change in the variables which condition the choice between transport by sea or by land. This will also help us to calculate the market share of each system as a function of foreseeable change in the variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper empirically evaluates key resources and capabilities in the liner shipping context. Based on a factor analysis, three resource dimensions are identified: marine equipment, information equipment, and corporate image; whereas seven capability dimensions are identified: purchasing, operation, human resource management, customer service, information integration, pricing, and financial management. The findings suggest that operation capability is perceived as the most important dimension, followed by customer service, human resource management, information integration, pricing purchasing, and financial management. Results indicate that four dimensions are found that significantly differ between shipping companies and agencies: marine equipment, information equipment, operation, and information integration. The theoretical and managerial implications of the research findings are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The institutional environment of rail transport has changed as a result of recent European directives, but the changes have taken different forms from one country to another. In the case of international maritime chains, the development of door‐to‐door services makes inland haulage from the loading and discharging ports extremely important, and it highlights the need to reshape the rail freight industry. This paper analyses the degree of involvement of different actors drawn from the maritime industry in developing and commercializing rail services in the changing regulatory environment. Several maritime operators, shipping lines, port‐handling companies and port authorities have been involved in some container rail services since the early days of liberalization. Their commitments take very different forms, however. Whereas contracts are mainly used for the provision of service, particularly for train haulage, integration by means of shareholding or creating subsidiaries or joint ventures is used for marketing. Important differences between France, the UK, Germany and the Netherlands are detailed. In the latter two countries, there is more involvement in the provision of rail services. Marketing rail services appear to be the main strategic issue for the maritime operators in all four countries [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, China's container ports have experienced a significant expansion in throughput and capacity. This paper provides a review of the sector and analyses the recent development of container ports and terminals within Mainland China. It then focuses in more depth on the competition between the ports of Shenzhen and Hong Kong. In particular, the port of Shenzhen is analysed in the context of Robinson's criteria for hub port development to try to discern whether it will become the dominant regional hub. The discussion concludes that despite Shenzhen's current competitive advantages, Hong Kong will, in all probability, retain its dominant role. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article aims to find the determinants of mode choice decisions for Spanish full lorry and full container loads shipments to the rest of Europe in four productive sectors: agroindustry, ceramic tiles, motor vehicle parts and household appliances. To this end exhaustive fieldwork was carried out and a database constructed, including 507 observations collected from transport decision-makers. A binary logit is used to estimate a modal choice model where the two modes considered are road transport and Short-Sea Shipping. The estimation of the model stresses the importance of a politico-economic evaluation of how to modify the modal split, paying particular attention to the role that can be attributed to a series of variables going beyond cost and time, which address the increasing complexity of sectorial logistics chains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The maritime industry has been continuously transforming the nature of its business and striving to embrace technology in many aspects. In this context, autonomous technologies have been receiving momentum with a potential to revolutionise the landscape of shipping industry. After conducting a comprehensive literature review on the issues facing by the short sea shipping (SSS) industry, a model is developed to explore the potential savings of removing crew and use of autonomous technologies through a Continuously Unmanned Ship (CUS) that is operated by a Shore Control Centre (SCC). The analysis shows that autonomous technologies are viable to the challenges that the shipping industry is facing in terms of crew costs and skill shortage. To validate this statement, a case study is selected and various scenarios were tested based on relevant operational and financial considerations, including crew arrangement, cargo utilisation levels and shore wage coefficients. The results suggest that the savings occur in demand-uncertain markets and where a network of vessels are operated via a control centre. While autonomous technology use in shipping holds promise, there remain several limitations that this research addresses in terms of implementation, commercial attractiveness, risk profile, legislative, workforce planning and port operations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From the policy and management perspective, this study aims to investigate the port management tools that port/public authorities have at their disposal and then to analyse to what extent the tools are used to enforce or encourage green port development at functional activities of port operations and development. We conduct an exploratory and comparative review based on two axes: on the one hand, the range of tools available to port authorities (pricing, monitoring and measuring, market access control and environmental standard regulation) and on the other hand, the functional activities in ports (shipping traffic, cargo handling and storage operations, intermodal connection, industrial activities, and port expansion). The situations in the leading ports in Asia and Europe, namely Singapore, Shanghai, Antwerp and Rotterdam are studied and compared, whereby the policies' effectiveness is discussed accordingly. Findings show that the ports are particularly mature in exercising environmental standard regulations which reveals that the enforcement approach is more prevalent. The most focused functional activity is shipping traffic which reflects that the ports are driven by the International Maritime Organisation. The respective port authorities in Antwerp and Rotterdam have a higher level of influence on devising green port policy in comparison to the two Asian ports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reviews and assesses the various survey techniques that have been used in studies in which data have been collected to obtain an understanding of road-based urban freight transport activities. The review identified 162 such studies in 18 countries over the last 50 years, and 12 different types of urban survey technique. In the studies reviewed, establishment surveys have been the most commonly used technique, followed by freight operator surveys, vehicle observation surveys, driver surveys, roadside interview surveys, and vehicle trip diaries. Few examples of other survey techniques (commodity flow, parking, global positioning system, supplier and service provider surveys) were identified. Establishment and vehicle observation surveys have the potential to offer insight into a wider range of issues associated with urban freight deliveries and collections to and from establishments in a specific urban area than the other survey techniques reviewed. These two survey techniques can provide insight into the frequency of goods vehicles deliveries and collections by time of day and day of week, the activities involved in the loading/unloading process, and the freight requirements of individual establishments. However, all 12 survey techniques provide insight into varying aspects of urban freight operations and various combinations are therefore likely to be used in future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Short sea shipping (SSS) is called to play a key role in ensuring sustainable mobility in the European context. In the past years several studies tried to define the SSS requirements and also to identify the SSS lines that were economically viable. However, no studies approach the profile of their users-the road transport firms-and the organizational patterns adopted by them, in order to gain a better understanding of this transport modality. This research, on the basis of a sample of 81 international road transport firms that use SSS between Spain and Italy, analyses the profile of these firms and certain elements inherent to their relationship with the shipping firms, according to the two modalities of organizing their SSS transport operations: accompanied versus unaccompanied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The UK's container trade is dominated by ports in the South East of England. In order to accommodate both trade growth and the increasing size of container ships, several investment schemes have been put forward in recent years. During their public scrutiny, a number of impediments to the market have become apparent, namely, the treatment of sunk cost, environmental constraints, the availability of subsidies to UK competitor ports and the nature of inland network infrastructure charging. These are analysed with a view to identifying policy prescriptions that are consistent with European Union perceptions of fair competition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ports of Hong Kong, Busan and Kaohsiung have long dominated container handling in East Asia. However, the emergence of new transhipment and gateway hub candidates, which include Shanghai, Shenzhen, Kwangyang and Qingdao, among others, will vie with these incumbents for a greater share of container traffic. Some might even unseat the incumbents. This study finds, through evidences from container shipping services connecting the region to major markets and trade routes between 1995 and 2001, that Mainland Chinese ports are increasingly attractive as direct ports of call for mainline services. The evidence also suggests that new services started by mainline operators calling at Mainland China are bypassing Japanese and Taiwanese ports. Nonetheless, these services continue to call at Hong Kong. Although the composition of containers handled at Mainland Chinese ports consists largely of gateway cargo, these ports are expected to handle a rising share of transhipment traffic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Internet service attributes desired by shippers were examined as well as a model that seeks to explain the intention of shippers to use Internet services in liner shipping. Using data collected from a survey of a group of shippers in Taiwan, the relationships among the constructs in the model were tested, namely: perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, security and use intention. The results suggest that shippers perceive tracing to be the most important service attribute of Internet services, followed by checking for customs clearance, vessel schedules and electronic document services. The findings indicate that perceived ease of use is the major factor affecting the intention of shippers to use Internet services, and that perceived ease of use has a strong positive effect on perceived usefulness. The results also indicate that security has a positive effect on a shipper’s perception of ease of use. However, the influence of security on use intention and perceived usefulness was not supported in this study. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings on the intention of shippers to use Internet services in liner shipping are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]