Modal and Temporal Separation at Freight Transport Terminals

Due to congestion, capacity and availability of inland transportation containerization contributed to a modal separation on terminals and the setting of a significant buffer in the form of large stockage areas. Each transport mode received a specific area on the terminal, so that operations on vessels, barges, trucks and trains could not obstruct one another. This modal separation in space was a requirement for setting up a system of indirect transshipment whereby each transport mode follows its own time schedule and operational throughput, implying a modal separation in time. Under the indirect transshipment system, the terminal stacking area functions as a buffer and temporary storage area between the deepsea operations and the land transport operations that take place later in the process. As a consequence, and in spite of higher turnover levels, the space consumed by container terminals increased substantially. In turn, these space requirements changed the geography of ports and the migration of terminals to new peripheral sites.