Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Transport Geography journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jtrangeo Port-centric cities: The role of freight distribution in defining the port-city relationship Jason Monios a,b , Rickard Bergqvist b, ⁎ , Johan Woxenius b a Kedge Business School, Domaine de Luminy, Rue Antoine Bourdelle, Marseille 13009, France b Department of Business Administration, School of Business, Economics and Law, Gothenburg University. P.O. Box 610, Gothenburg SE 405 30, Sweden ARTICLE INFO Keywords: Seaport Distribution Port-centric logistics Port-centric city Intermodal transport Port cities Urban freight transport ABSTRACT The goal of this paper is to explore the intersection between two streams of literature: port cities and port-centric logistics. While many ports have moved out of city locations, partly facilitated by intermodal corridors, some ports remain in city locations, many retaining a large share of distribution activity in or near the port. This paper will consider distribution challenges arising from the port-city dynamic in relation to the port-inland distribution axis, in particular the role of port and city planners and decision makers in managing this process. The case analysis is based on the Port of Gothenburg, the largest port in Scandinavia. Findings suggest that the majority of influencing factors are marginally in favour of siting distribution fa- cilities inland rather than near the port, yet city planning and national sentiment continue to incentivise de- velopment near the port. There are two conclusions for the port-centric city. First, it needs to coordinate its logistics from a regional perspective, determine what activities belong near the port and not compete with inland locations for what is better located there. Second, port-centric logistics needs to be better aligned with an urban freight transport and city logistics perspective. 1. Introduction The goal of this paper is to explore the overlap between two streams of literature: port cities and port-centric logistics. Certain key issues are already known from the rather large literature on the port-city re- lationship, one of the main discussions considering ports located in or near cities compared to those established in new purpose-built sites away from urban conurbations. Ports still located in city locations face challenges from congestion and pollution and city planners try to find solutions to these problems while retaining the port's economic con- tribution to the city. There is also a growing literature on port-based distribution or “port-centric logistics”. This research considers the current reality of what used to be the port's traditional role as the site of warehouse and distribution activities. Just as many ports have moved out of city locations, much distribution activity has moved inland, seeking cheaper land, more space, less congestion and increased proximity to origins and destinations. Increased quality of transport infrastructure, particularly high volume intermodal corridors, has fa- cilitated this trend. Nevertheless, many ports still retain a large share of distribution activity in or near the port. By means of case study analysis, this paper will consider distribution challenges arising from the port- city dynamic in relation to the port-inland distribution axis, in particular the role of port and city planners and decision makers in managing this process. The case analysis is based on the port of Gothenburg, the largest port in Scandinavia. With recently privatised terminals, the port au- thority is seeking to redefine its role with its Swedish hinterland by growing the area of port land devoted to logistics activities. This could be considered a contrast to the last decade which has seen a large focus on the rail network and inland terminals for transporting goods to the hinterland. A conceptual framework on the relative attractiveness of ports and inland locations for the siting of distribution activities will be used to explore the relationship between the port, its immediate locality and city environs and the larger hinterland. A supplementary goal of the paper is thus to test the framework and make any revisions arising as a result of this empirical application. Section 2 reviews the literature on port cities to establish the key issues, while Section 3 identifies the major influences on decisions to locate distribution activities at the port or inland. The methodology is described in Section 4, followed by the empirical application to the port city of Gothenburg in Section 5. The case study is followed by discus- sion and synthesis of the framework factors to identify the key influ- ences on distribution strategies in the port-centric city in Section 6. Section 7 concludes with two clear recommendations for the port- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2017.11.012 Received 6 April 2017; Received in revised form 15 November 2017; Accepted 19 November 2017 ⁎ Corresponding author. E-mail address: rickard.bergqvist@handels.gu.se (R. Bergqvist). Journal of Transport Geography 66 (2018) 53–64 Available online 24 November 2017 0966-6923/ © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. T