Landbridges provide a level of continuity between maritime and long-distance inland transport networks. There are four main types of landbridges depending on the destination of the transoceanic cargo:
- Landbridge: Using a landmass as a link in a maritime transport chain involving a foreign origin and destination. This type of link is not highly used in the North American context as it is more convenient for Europe bound cargo from Asia to use the maritime route instead or the emerging Eurasian landbridge for niche cargo.
- Mini landbridge: Using a landmass as a link in a transport chain involving a foreign origin and a destination at the end of the landmass.
- Micro landbridge: Using a landmass as a link in a transport chain involving a foreign origin and an inland destination. A common type of service for Asian cargo bound to an inland North American market.
- Reverse landbridge: Through a maritime detour reaching an inland destination by using the closest maritime facade instead of the landbridge. This type of landbridge has experienced remarkable growth with the usage of the Panama Canal to reach East Coast ports by an all-water route from Asia. The expansion of the Panama Canal in 2016 is expected to increase the significance of this type of landbridge service.