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Public regulation and passengers importance in port infrastructure costs

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  • Núñez-Sánchez, Ramón
  • Jara-Díaz, Sergio
  • Coto-Millán, Pablo

Abstract

Because ports are conceived and designed mainly to be the transfer point of various types of freight, passengers tend to be forgotten in the analysis of port costs. In this paper first we investigate the importance of passengers in port infrastructure costs by means of a multi-output cost function estimated from 20 annual observations (1986-2005) for 26 Spanish Port Authorities. Results show that, although a passenger weights on average less than one tenth of a ton, he or she represents as much as two tons of solid bulk and about three tons of containerized general cargo in terms of marginal costs. Secondly, we compare the marginal costs of different cargoes with their price caps established by law. Results suggest that some type of second best pricing is induced by present regulation.

Suggested Citation

  • Núñez-Sánchez, Ramón & Jara-Díaz, Sergio & Coto-Millán, Pablo, 2011. "Public regulation and passengers importance in port infrastructure costs," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 45(7), pages 653-666, August.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:transa:v:45:y:2011:i:7:p:653-666
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Hidalgo, Soraya & Núñez-Sánchez, Ramón, 2012. "Estimating allocative efficiency in port authorities with demand uncertainty," MPRA Paper 38136, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Bensassi, Sami & Márquez-Ramos, Laura & Martínez-Zarzoso, Inmaculada & Suárez-Burguet, Celestino, 2015. "Relationship between logistics infrastructure and trade: Evidence from Spanish regional exports," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 47-61.
    4. Núñez-Sánchez, Ramón & Coto-Millán, Pablo, 2012. "The impact of public reforms on the productivity of Spanish ports: A parametric distance function approach," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 24(C), pages 99-108.
    5. Guo, Liquan & Yang, Dong & Yang, Zhongzhen, 2018. "Port integration method in multi-port regions (MPRs) based on the maximal social welfare of the external transport system," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 243-257.

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