ABSTRACT
This chapter establishes the outlines of the concept of unproductive mobility as a result of capacity mismatch and focuses on work by the authors to demonstrate empirical applications of the concept. It identifies unproductive and induced mobilities in the global maritime transport system. The chapter analyses overcapacity of vessels due to the rush to order ultra-large container ships, which leads to a cascading down of vessels to medium routes that do not need them. After the onset of the global recession in 2008, demand shrank just as large amounts of vessel capacity entered the market, leading to overcapacity and the resulting plunge in freight rates and charter rates. The chapter also analyses infrastructure undercapacity of ports facing the prospect of vessels cascading all the way down to the lowest tier, which may not possess the physical infrastructure to handle them.
