2.

Importance and Performance

Three major attributes are linked with the importance and the performance of transport
terminals:

 Location. The major locational factor of a transport terminal is obviously to serve

a large concentration of economic activities, representing a terminal’s market area.
Specific terminals have specific locational constraints, such as port and airport
sites. The former requires a suitable coastline and nautical profile, while the latter
requires a large footprint of open flat land. New transport terminals tend to be
located outside central areas to avoid high land costs and congestion and find
available land.
 Accessibility. Accessibility to other terminals (at the local, regional and global
scale) as well as how well the terminal is linked to the regional transport system is
of importance. For instance, a maritime terminal has little relevance if it is poorly
connected to its market area through a high-capacity inland transport system (rail,
road, or barge).
 Infrastructure. The primary function of a terminal is to handle and transship
freight or passengers since modes are physically separated. Modern terminal
infrastructures consequently require massive investments and are among the
largest structures ever built. Airports, ports, and distribution centers are visible on
remote sensing images. Terminals have a nominal capacity, which is related to
the amount of land they occupy and their level of technological, labor, and
managerial intensity. Infrastructure considerations are essential as they must
accommodate current traffic and anticipate future trends along with technological
and logistical changes. A utilization rate of 75 to 80% of design capacity is
considered to be optimal since, above this level, congestion starts to rise,
undermining the reliability of terminal operations. A terminal rarely has a
consistent utilization, which is often characterized by periods of high and low
activity (daily, weekly, monthly).

The time a conveyance (bus, truck, train, or ship) is allowed to load or unload passengers
or freight at a terminal is usually defined as dwell time. For passenger terminals,
travelers expect the lowest dwell time possible. For freight terminals, the situation is
more complex as dwell time refers to the amount of time cargo stays in a terminal yard or
storage area while waiting to be loaded. Dwell time can be operational, which reflects
the performance of terminal infrastructures and management, including the scheduling
and availability of transport services. It can also be transactional, which is usually linked
with the performance of clearance procedures (such as checking in and customs). Finally,
dwell time can be storage related, implying that the owner or the carrier of the cargo
deliberately leaves the cargo at the terminal as part of a transport or supply chain
management strategy. Intermodalism has incited new relations between transport
terminals, which are becoming nodes in integrated transport chains. This is particularly
the case between port, rail, and barge terminals. New forms of integration are also
emerging, such as between ports and airports.

Physical Separation between Modes and Passengers / Cargo at Terminals

Inventory in Transit at Freight Terminals
Static and Dynamic Capacity of Transport Infrastructure