Projecting and Planning for the Movement of Goods and
People Into, Out of, and Within, the Northeast Corridor,
2007 – 2025, University of Delaware, May 11 2007
The Bostwash Corridor:
Global and National
Dimensions
Jean-Paul Rodrigue
Associate Professor, Dept. of Economics &
Geography, Hofstra University, New York,
USA
Email: ecojpr@hofstra.edu
Paper available at:
http://people.hofstra.edu/faculty/Jean-paul_Rodrigue
Gateways and Corridors in Transportation
and Regional Economics

Theories and concepts about corridors
Global cities and hierarchies
Economic roles and functions
Hinterlands
Connectivity
Flows and locations
UPS Willow Springs Distribution Center, Chicago
Types and Functions of Freight Corridors
Type
Function
Examples
Short distance (within a Modal shift, improved Switch carrying,
gateway / hub)
capacity and
Alameda, “Agile
throughput.
Port”, Panama
Hinterland access
(between a gateway
and its vicinity)
Expand market area, Rail shuttles, PIDN,
reduce distribution
Virginia Inland port
costs & congestion
Landbridge (between
gateways)
Long distance
container flows,
continuity of global
commodity chains
Circum-hemispheric
Integrated global
(between gateways with transport chains
a maritime segment)
North American
landbridge
Northern EastWest Corridor
Elements of the Maritime / Land Interface
Maritime Freight
Distribution
Foreland (Shipping Network)
Inland Freight
Distribution
Port System
Gateways
Road
Rail
Corridors and Hubs
Hinterland (FDC)
Coastal / Fluvial
Traffic at the 50 Largest Container Ports,
2004
Tacoma
Seattle
Oakland
Los Angeles
New York/New Jersey
Charleston
Dubai
Long Beach
Jeddah
Salalah
Nhava Sheva
Colombo
Traffic 2004 (TEU)
Less than 2 million
2 to 4 million
Santos
4 to 7 million
Durban
7 to 10 million
Melbourne
More than 10 million
Pacific Asia
Tianjin
Laem Chabang
Port Kalang
Guangzhou
Tanjung Pelepas
Singapore
Tanjung Priok
Manila
Hamburg
Bremen/Bremerhafen
Rotterdam
Antwerp
Felixstowe
Dalian
Quingdao
Shenzhen
Shanghai
Yanti an
Ningbo
Hong Kong
Kaohsiung
Keelung
Europe
LeHavre
Busan
Nagoya
Kobe
Osaka Tokyo
Yokohama
Barcel ona
Valencia
Gioia Tauro
Algeciras
Three Major Pendulum Routes Serviced by
OOCL, 2006
Oakland
Los Angeles
New York
Norfolk
Charleston
27 Days
Hamburg
Le Havre
Rotterdam
Southampton
Genoa
Fos
Barcelona
Tokyo
Shanghai
Ningbo
Kaohsiung
Hong Kong
Laem Chabang
49 Days
Atlantic Express (ATX)
European Union / Mediterranean (EUM)
Note: Paths are approximate
South China Express (SCX)
Singapore
Port Kelang
39 Days
Majort Port Holdings, 2007
Dedicated Maritime Container Terminals
APM Terminals
Dubai Ports World
Hutchison Port Holdings
Port of Singapore Authority
Eurogate
Stevedoring Services of America
Pacific Asia
Europe
Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue, Dept. of Economics & Geography, Hofstra University
Gateways and Hubs as Central and
Intermediate Locations
Intermodal
Gateway
■ Gateways & hubs
• Nodes offering an accessibility to
a large system of circulation.
• Obligatory (semi) points of
passage.
• Convergence of transport
corridors.
• Centrality and intermediacy.
■ Gateways
Transmodal
• Favorable physical location.
• Intermodal and stable in time.
■ Hubs
Hub
• Transmodal and subject to
change.
• Commercial decisions.
• Delays vs. frequency of services.
Hinterland Setting and Major Economic
Regions
North America
Western Europe
Coastal concentration
Landbridge connections
Inland concentration
Coastal gateways
Hinterland intensity
Freight Corridor hierarchy
East and Southeast Asia
Coastal concentration
Low hinterland access
Gateway hierarchy
Gateways and Hinterland Effect
Pacific Asia
North American West Coast
SEZ
Corridor
Inefficient Inland Freight Distribution
Efficient Inland Freight Distribution
Corridors and Regional Development
B
A
Order
High
Low
Specialization and
High Low interdependency
C
Gateway
Flows
Supply Chains, Gateways and Corridors

Global supply chains and production networks
Continental integration
Gateway choice
APL Distribution Center, Shenzhen, China
Commodity Chains and Added Value
High
Globalization
Added value
R&D
Sales / Service
Marketing
Branding
Distribution
Design
Concept
Manufacturing
Low
Commodity chain
Logistics
Logistics and the Acceleration of Freight
Speed barrier
Transshipment
Pull Logistics
Logistical threshold
Containerization
Push Logistics
Shipment
The North American Landbridge
Fraser
Vancouver
Tacoma
Seattle
Halifax
Montreal
Portland
Minneapolis
Chicago
Salt Lake City
New York/New Jersey
Baltimore
Wilmington (DE)
Oakland
Kansas CIty
Hampton Roads
Long Beach
Los Angeles
Charleston
Savannah
El Paso
Jacksonville
Houston
New Orleans
Miami
Port Everglades
Americ an Landbridge
Canadian Landbridge
Mexican Landbridge
Altamira
Connector
Major Container Port
Major Rail Freight Distribution Center
Manzanillo
Veracruz
Gateways, Corridors and Competitiveness

Emerging continental networks
Trade barriers
Strategic partners
Interregional linkages
International competition
APL “Australia” entering San Francisco Harbor
Beware of Future Expectations: The Fallacies of
Linear Thinking (Projected TEU Traffic, Port of
NY/NJ)
12
11
10
Million TEUs
9
8
7
Imports
Exports
Empties
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
2000
2010
2020
2030
2040
2050
2060
Are You &*%@# Out of Your Mind?
Projections for Container Port Volumes,
2020
Sectors of American Imports of Asian Goods
Through Maritime Container Shipping, 2004 (in
TEUs)
Apparel
Textiles
Machinery
Electrical equipment
Toys
Shoes
Tires
Auto parts
Appliances
Electronics
Furniture
Big box retailer
0
300,000
600,000
900,000
1,200,000
1,500,000
1,800,000
World Container Traffic, 1980-2005, and
Guesses for up to 2020
1000
900
800
Million TEU
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
1980
1985
1990
1995
2000
2005
2010
2015
2020
Balance of Containerized Cargo Flows
along Major Trade Routes, 1995-2006 (in
millions of TEUs)
0
1995
1996
-2
-4
-6
-8
-10
-12
-14
-16
-18
Europe/USA
Asia/Europe
Asia/USA
1997
1998
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
Main North American Trade Corridors and
Metropolitan Freight Centers
Edmonton
Calgary
Vancouver
Winnipeg
Seattle
Halifax
Portland
Montreal
Minneapolis
Toronto
Boston
Detroit
Chicago
Salt Lake City
Pittsburgh
Philadelphia
Baltimore
San Francisco
Denver
Cincinnati
Kansas City
St. Louis
Norfolk
Charlotte
Los Angeles
San Diego
New York
Cleveland
Oklahoma Ci ty
Memphis
Phoenix
Atl anta
Charleston
Dallas
Hub
Gateway
Houston
New Orleans
Miami
Institutional Frameworks for Governance

Political jurisdictions
Transport networks and corporations
Trading blocs and internal free trade
Harmonization of regulations and practices
“Maersk Sealand” Locomotive, Landers Yard (NS), Chicago
NAFTA Transborder Truck Flows and Traffic at US
Ports of Entry, 2002
Is 53 the Magic Number?
■ New container specifications?
• Economies of scale push towards a larger container:
• Particularly for inland carriers.
• Strong “legacy costs” (inertia):
• Accumulated investments in modal and intermodal infrastructure.
• The North American vs. the European standard:
•
•
•
•
ISO 40 footer: 12.027 m x 2.33 m.
NA domestic 53 footer: 16.15 m x 2.4 m.
European Intermodal Load Unit: 13.2 m x 2.4 m.
China will play a significant role in the decision.
• The bottom line is likely to be the size that can be fitted on
road transport systems, so 53 could be the “magic number”.
Carrying Capacity of Containers (in cubic
feet)
53 feet truck
4,090
53 feet hi-cube container
3,955
53 feet standard container
3,830
48 feet standard container
3,471
45 feet standard container
3,026
EILU Long 45
2,895
40 feet hi-cube container
2,690
40 feet standard container
2,385
20 feet standard container
1,169
0
500
1,000 1,500 2,000 2,500 3,000 3,500 4,000 4,500
Public and Private Investments in
Gateways and Corridors

Financing corridor and gateway development
Co-production and cooperation
Bottleneck mitigation
Multimodal Infrastructure
Inland ports
Regulatory preferences
Fiscal regimes
Translisft crane, NS Rutherford yard, PA
Level of Congestion of the Interstate
Highway System
Potential Location of Major Transmodal Rail Facilities:
Maritime Gateways and Inland Hubs
Calgary
Vancouver
Seattle
Regina
Winnipeg
Tacoma
Montreal
Minneapolis
Chicago
Oakland
Kansas City
New York/New Jersey
St Louis
Hampton Roads
Memphis
Long Beach
Los Angeles
Dallas / Fort Worth
Houston
Charleston
Savannah
Maritime Rail Gateway
Transmodal Rail Hub
Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue, Dept. of Economics & Geography, Hofstra University
Boston – Washington Corridor: Volume to
Capacity Ratio
Port Inland Distribution Network and
Freight Clusters
Circum Hemispheric Dreams
Vostochny
Oakland
Harbin
Long Beach
Un ite
d
S tate
s
Salt Lake City
Tacoma
Vancouver
Lianyungang
Beijing
Port
Gauge Change
El Paso
Zabaykalsk
Rail Terminal
Canada
China
Ulaanbaatar
Arctic Bridge
Irkutsk
Northern Sea Route
Lanzhou
Mongolia
Northwest Passage
Houston
Kansas CIty
Russia
Minneapolis
Chicago
Urumqi
Novosibirsk
Lokot
Savannah
New York
Astana
Montreal
New York
Yekat erinburg
Perm'
Halifax
Archangel'sk
Haparanda/Tornio
Oulu
Vologda
Vainikkala
St. Petersburg
Moscow
Maritime Segment
Rail Main Trunk (Broad Gauge)
Rail Main Trunk (Standard Gauge)
Azimuthal Equidistant Polar Projection
Rotterdam
Brest
Presnogorkovka
Kazakhstan
Druzhba