ABSTRACT
This paper presents a numerical method to delimit the hinterland and foreland of short sea shipping (SSS) routes based on the utilization of Ro-Ro ships with an application to a route in the European Atlantic Area. A review of literature is carried out and the numerical method, based on transportation cost and time combined in a generalized transportation cost, is described. A case study is developed for a route between Portugal and Northern France in which short sea shipping is in competition with fully road-based transportation. The method is applied to carry out systematic calculations between pairs origin/destination, allowing the delimitation of the geographic boundaries of the route’s hinterland and foreland. The effects of variations in the maritime freight rate, ship service speed and of perturbations in road transportation caused by border controls (necessary as result of the Covid-19 crisis) are evaluated. Conclusions are drawn regarding the competitiveness of SSS compared to road transportation.
