Identifying and hierarchizing factors that affect the choice of transport routes in land ferry transport chains

Motives: The choice of a transport route has long been the subject of research because it is regarded as one of the most crucial decisions in transport organizations. However, there is a lack of studies addressing this issue in the context of land-ferry supply chains, where two transport modes have to be integrated. Therefore, analyses of multimodal transport should involve a holistic approach to account not only for seaborne transport, but also for the land leg before and after the ferry trip. This knowledge gap should be urgently addressed due to the importance of land-ferry supply chains in the transport system. Aim: The aim of this study was to identify and hierarchize factors that determine the choice of a multimodal transport route combining ferry and road transport. Results: The factors that determine the choice of ferry routes were identified and hierarchized according to their importance as primary, supplementary, and additional routes. The study demonstrated that the cost and time of transport are the main determinants in the decision-making process, with time being marginally more important than cost.