Dry ports in Sweden and their role in modal shift

Although dry ports can be pivotal in facilitating intermodal transportation, their role in that context has not been sufficiently studied. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to identify dry ports in Sweden, qualitatively describe the facilities identified and analyse them in terms of capacity utilisation, location, functionality and services, maturity, geographical scope and focus of operations, and the engagement of the actors involved. Data collection for the study was triangulated using interviews, email correspondence, internal reports, student reports and web pages. The findings revealed 11 facilities with characteristics of dry ports. Although all dry ports identified support modal shift by customising services and taking proactive approaches to business development, modal shift requires other elements (e.g., infrastructure and freight train scheduling) to be developed as well. The dry ports studied differ in many ways, but all fit into the inside–out model of directional development, albeit with other actors in the transport system playing significant roles in their development. Further research is needed to investigate how dry ports can benefit by networking and collaborating