Types of Maritime Routes

There are three major types of maritime routes:

• Port-to-port. Involves a more or less regular service between two ports, often moving back and forth, but it is very likely that the flow of freight is unidirectional, meaning that the return trip is empty. This system has the disadvantage of offering limited connectivity and mainly represents movements of raw materials, notably oil and minerals, between zones of extraction and industrial regions.
• Pendulum. This type of route is characterizing containerized cargo and involves a regular itinerary between a sequence of ports, often serviced by geographical proximity. A set of ports along one seaboard are serviced and then an ocean is crossed with the process being repeated along another seaboard. The term pendulum refers to the shipping service moving back and forth between two maritime ranges. This is notably the case between Western Europe and the Eastern Seaboard of the United States or between Pacific Asia and North America.
• Round-the-World. Involves servicing continuously a sequence of ports, often in both directions, so that sequence enables a round trip around the world. A limited amount of ports per continent are serviced. This type of maritime route strictly concerns container shipping and involve a series of transshipment hubs.

Home | Contents | Media | Glossary | Links | About | Contact | Purchase

Copyright © 1998-2012, Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue, Dept. of Global Studies & Geography, Hofstra University, New York, USA.
This material (including graphics) cannot be copied or redistributed, in whole or in part, in ANY FORM (printed or electronic) and on ANY MEDIA. For specific uses permission MUST be requested and the material must be cited.