Enhancing Port Accessibility. Challenges, Measures, and Sustainability in Terminal Design

Port accessibility is a crucial factor in promoting sustainable development, as it directly impacts the three pillars of sustainability: economic growth, environmental quality, and social equity. Within the port context, accessibility plays a significant role in shaping operational performance, competitiveness, and the integration of the port with its surrounding environment. This study critically examines the main challenges and measures related to accessibility, delving into its distinct dimensions concerning both people and freight. For individuals, accessibility focuses on enabling citizens and tourists to easily and comfortably access the port and its associated urban or leisure activities. For freight, it emphasizes the necessity of an efficient multimodal transport network that facilitates the swift entry, handling, and departure of goods, with seamless connections to inland terminals. The methodology includes an overview of the main challenges in understanding the role of accessibility in port terminals, the challenges and the definition of the criteria for accessibility in port terminals by the different stakeholders involved in the process. This approach provides a foundation for addressing accessibility-related issues and proposing measures that foster the development of competitive, integrated, and sustainable ports.