Identifying and Prioritizing Effective Factors in Constructing Dry Ports in Iran Jafar Sayareh 1* , Mohammad Amin Dana 2 , Hamid Reza Tahmak 3 1- Associate Professor, Chabahar Maritime University (CMU), Chabahar, Iran 2- MSc., Port and Maritime Organisation, Chabahar, Iran 3- MSc., Chabahar Maritime University, Chabahar, Iran Received: June 2016 Accepted: September 2016 © 2016 Journal of the Persian Gulf. All rights reserved. Abstract This research aims at identifying and ranking the effective factors in constructing dry ports in Iran. Initially, by reviewing the literature and inputs from professionals, 20 important criteria impacting constructing dry ports were identified,categorized under three groups of infrastructure, hardware and software and data were collected through questionnaire. Questionnaire’s validity was determined by university professors and professionals and reliability of the questionnaire was evaluated by Cronbach’s Alpha, which showed an acceptable level of 0.789. Collected data were analyzed by appropriate tatistical tests. The results showed that the main dimensions of software, hardware and infrastructure were the most effective factors in constructing dry ports in Iran respectively. Moreover, of the 20 identified criteria, “the availability of the equipment and facilities for loading and unloading”, “providing the customs and clearance services”, “access to the national and international main routes (hinterland)” were the most important criteria and have had the most effects on constructing dry ports. Criteria such as “access to the empty container for commercial transactions”, “proximity to the production markets and “access to the borders” showed the least effect on constructing dry ports in Iran. Keywords: Seaports, Intermodal Transportation, Port Operation, Dry Ports. 1. Introduction Commencement of containerization dates back to mid-1950s, and because of its unique features, has played a vital role in regional and international economy and commerce. In the last 20 years or so, the growth of containerization has intensified, and its traffic volume has multiplied accordingly. This is an ongoing trend in container trade and its impacts are two-fold. First, it triggers the construction of larger container ships with higher carrying capacity to respond to the worldwide growth of container transportation demand; and second, it calls for appropriate arrangements in ports to deal with increased activities because of increased container traffic. An arrangement, which proved to be very useful in easing the pressures of high congestion of container terminal, is the concept of ‘dry ports’ (Arabshahi et. al, 2010). The development of inland Journal of the Persian Gulf (Marine Science)/Vol. 7/No. 25/ September 2016/12/37-48 * Email: J.Sayareh@gmail.com Downloaded from jpg.inio.ac.ir at 21:23 IRST on Saturday December 11th 2021