ISSN: 2226-3624
Open access
Port-Airport Synergy (PAS) has been widely recognized as a key mechanism for enhancing multi-modal connectivity and supporting regional logistics integration. However, despite increasing policy attention, PAS remains underdeveloped in inland non-provincial capital logistics hub cities in China. Existing studies have predominantly focused on infrastructure development and performance outcomes, while overlooking the institutional conditions required for cross-modal coordination. This study addresses this gap by introducing the concept of Institutional Coordination Readiness (ICR) as a precondition for PAS implementation. Rather than treating PAS as an already realized operational system, this study conceptualizes it as a potential outcome contingent upon underlying institutional arrangements. Drawing on existing literature and contextual evidence from inland China, the study argues that fragmented governance structures, weak inter-agency coordination and inconsistent policy frameworks significantly constrain PAS feasibility. By reframing PAS as a feasibility-oriented problem, this paper develops a conceptual framework linking institutional coordination readiness to PAS implementation feasibility. The findings contribute to the literature by shifting the analytical focus from infrastructure and performance to institutional preconditions, and by providing a theoretical foundation for understanding why PAS often fails to emerge in governance-constrained inland contexts. This study makes two main contributions. First, it introduces Institutional Coordination Readiness (ICR) as a novel analytical construct to assess the preconditions for Port-Airport Synergy. Second, it develops a feasibility-oriented conceptual framework that shifts the focus from infrastructure performance to institutional conditions, offering new insights into PAS development in inland logistics system.
Revilla, E., Acero, B., & Sáenz, M. J. (2024). Resilience in the supply chain. In The Palgrave handbook of supply chain management (pp. 601–625). Cham: Palgrave Macmillan.
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. (2023). Review of Maritime Transport 2023. United Nations. https://unctad.org/webflyer/review-maritime-transport-2023
Rodrigue, J.-P. (2024). The geography of transport systems (6th ed.). Routledge.
Co?kun, A. E., & Erturgut, R. (2025). Does institutionalization enhance logistics performance in international businesses? A moderated and mediated model. Operations Management Research, 18(3), 1045–1066.
Zhang, X., & Huang, Y. (2024). Spatial evolution, influencing factors and spillover effects of logistics resilience in the Yangtze River Economic Belt. PLoS ONE, 19(8), Article e0303639.
Li, J., Shen, Y., & Qian, J. (2023). Spatial structure of China’s e-commerce express logistics network based on space of flows. Chinese Geographical Science, 33(1), 36–50.
Zhao, S., & Xie, C. (2022). Spatial difference of China’s regional logistics development and construction of information network platform based on artificial intelligence technology under the background of new economy. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, Article 871538.
De Martino, P. (2020). Defending the past by challenging the future: Spatial and institutional path dependencies in the Naples port-city region. Regional Studies, Regional Science, 7(1), 108–117.
Magnan, M., & van der Horst, M. (2020). Involvement of port authorities in inland logistics markets: The cases of Rotterdam, Le Havre and Marseille. Maritime Economics & Logistics, 22(1), 102–123.
Haugstetter, H., & Cahoon, S. (2010). Strategic intent: Guiding port authorities to their new world? Research in Transportation Economics, 27(1), 30–36.
Raimbault, Nicolas (2019). From regional planning to port regionalization and urban logistics: The inland port and the governance of logistics development in the Paris region. Journal of Transport Geography, 78, 205–213.
Guo, J., & Yu, S. (2022). Evolution of the spatial structure of coastal port logistics network and its influencing factors in China. Tropical Geography, 42(10), 1640–1650.
Zhang, Q., & Li, L. (2021). Analysis on the construction of Zhengzhou Airport Economy Zone under Internet economy. In G. Jezic, K. Howlett, L. Jain, & R. Howlett (Eds.), Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing (Vol. 1342, pp. 45–51).
Gong, C., & Omain, S. Z. (2026). Institutional Coordination Readiness as a Precondition for Port-Airport Synergy in Inland China. International Journal of Academic Research in Economics and Management Sciences, 15(2), 100–105.
Copyright: © 2026 The Author(s)
Published by HRMARS (www.hrmars.com)
This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at: http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode