The Influence of the Port of Gothenburg towards Inland Mode Choice Decision-Making

Abstract

The transportation sector is an essential component for a country’s economy and its population well-being; however, this sector is a major contributor to the current environmental issues that society is facing and directly connected with the quality of life e.g. emissions, accidents, health impacts, etc. Furthermore, the Port’s role has changed as they are key drivers of development not only on the seaside but also in the inland side regarding environmental externalities mitigations. In the case of the Port of Gothenburg there is currently a lack of initiatives/incentives that may promote a more sustainable transportation sector. Therefore, the researchers investigated and identified Green Port Initiatives/Incentives from several ports around the world that may be adopted by Port of Gothenburg. For this purpose, a literature review regarding the transportation sector and its activities related to the ports was gathered. In addition, interviews were conducted to actors with expertise within the field e.g. Government Institutions, Port and Regional Authorities; surveys were developed and sent to Swedish Shippers to obtain information from their perspective regarding the transportation sector. The results of this master’s thesis showed that there are several port initiatives/incentives e.g. Information Systems Platforms, Monetary Discounts and Regulations that may be considered and address the environmental sustainability problems in the transport sector at the Port of Gothenburg; thus, benefit the City of Gothenburg and Sweden. However, many challenges impede the promoting of the initiatives/incentives e.g. collaboration among actors, leadership, infrastructure, etc.