A container port, container terminal, or intermodal terminal is a facility where
cargo containers are
transshipped between
different transport vehicles, for onward transportation. The transshipment may be between
container ships and land vehicles, for example
train
A train (from Old French , from Latin">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ... , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles th ...
s or
truck
A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport freight, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construct ...
s, in which case the terminal is described as a ''maritime container port''. Alternatively, the transshipment may be between land vehicles, typically between train and truck, in which case the terminal is described as an ''inland container port''.
In November 1932, the first inland container port in the world was opened by the
Pennsylvania Railroad company in
Enola, Pennsylvania.
Port Newark-Elizabeth on the
Newark Bay in the
Port of New York and New Jersey is considered the world's first maritime container port. On April 26, 1956, the
Ideal X was rigged for an experiment to use standardized cargo containers that were stacked and then unloaded to a compatible truck chassis at Port Newark. The concept had been developed by the McLean Trucking Company. On August 15, 1962, the
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, (PANYNJ; stylized, in logo since 2020, as Port Authority NY NJ) is a joint venture between the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and New Jersey, established in 1921 through an interstate c ...
opened the world’s first container port, Elizabeth Marine Terminal.
Maritime container ports tend to be part of a larger
port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manch ...
, and the biggest maritime container ports can be found situated around major
harbours. Inland container ports tend to be located in or near major cities, with good rail connections to maritime container ports.
It is common for cargo that arrives to a container port in a single ship to be distributed over several modes of transportation for delivery to inland customers. According to a manager from the
Port of Rotterdam, it may be fairly typical way for the cargo of a large 18,000
TEU container ship to be distributed over 19 container trains (74 TEU each), 32 barges (97 TEU each) and 1,560 trucks (1.6 TEU each, on average). The further container terminal, in April 2015, such
APM Terminal Maasvlakte II, that adapts the advanced technology of
remotely-controlled STS
gantry cranes and conceptions of
sustainability
Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): env ...
,
renewable energy
Renewable energy (also called green energy) is energy made from renewable resource, renewable natural resources that are replenished on a human lifetime, human timescale. The most widely used renewable energy types are solar energy, wind pow ...
, and zero
carbon dioxide emission.
Both maritime and inland container ports usually provide storage facilities for both loaded and empty containers. Loaded containers are stored for relatively short periods, whilst waiting for onward transportation, whilst unloaded containers may be stored for longer periods awaiting their next use. Containers are normally stacked for storage, and the resulting stores are known as container stacks.
In recent years methodological advances regarding container port operations have considerably improved, such as
container port design process. For a detailed description and a comprehensive list of references see, e.g., the operations research literature.
Container Port Operators
This is a list of the world's top 10 largest container port operators in 2024 according to
Lloyd's List.
See also
*
Container port design process
*
Containerization
Containerization is a system of intermodal freight transport using intermodal containers (also called shipping containers, or International Organization for Standardization, ISO containers). Containerization, also referred as container stuf ...
*
Container on barge
*
Container ship
*
Dock (maritime)
The word dock () in American English refers to one or a group of human-made structures that are involved in the handling of boats or ships (usually on or near a shore). In British English, the term is not used the same way as in American Engli ...
*
List of container ports
*
List of largest container shipping companies
*
Warehouse
A warehouse is a building for storing goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial parks on the rural–urban fringe, out ...
References
External links
*
Destiny of a Maritime Nation', a 2018 documentary by
Channel NewsAsia, discusses
Singapore
Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
's 1960s shift to container traffic and interviews port workers present at the time. (Sequence covering containerization begins near time index 28:40)
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Water transport