The Heartland Intermodal Corridor: public private partnerships and the transformation of institutional settings

This paper examines the development process of the Heartland Intermodal Corridor from Norfolk, Virginia to Columbus, Ohio in the United States, opened in September 2010. The aim of the project was to decrease transport costs and increase competitiveness for peripheral regions such as West Virginia by upgrading existing branch lines to double-stack capacity and building new intermodal terminals.The paper develops a theoretical framework for institutional analysis, combining the overall institutional setting with the roles of individual actors confronting a collective action problem. Results suggest that the project represents an observable trend in freight funding policy in the United States, moving away from congressional earmarks which have been criticised in the past for their subjective nature, and towards a more transparent, bid-based system. Findings from the research demonstrate that the institutional setting has been transformed, moving towards a reconciliation between top-down planning approaches and market-driven private sector development. Furthermore, encouragement of multi-state public–private consortia will potentially make it easier to develop national corridors that can support new markets, while generating both public and private benefits.

► Develops a theoretical framework for institutional analysis. ► Combines the institutional setting with the roles of individual actors. ► Results suggest the institutional setting has been transformed. ► New policy reconciles top-down and market-driven approaches.