SASHTO 2009
Water: The New Multimodal Outlook
September 1, 2009
US DOT / Maritime Administration
By Lauren Brand
South Atlantic Gateway Office
What does the
US Department of Transportation/
Maritime Administration do?
– Cargo Preference
– Deepwater Ports &
Offshore Activities
– National Port Strategy &
Strategic Ports
– Ready Reserve Fleet
– Shipyards
– Title XI shipbuilding loan
guarantees
– Hurricane Recovery
Assistance
– Port & Terminal
Infrastructure
Development
– America’s Marine
Highways
– Port Security Grants
– Shipper & Carrier
Outreach
– Workforce Development
Gateways Represent the Region to
MARAD & MARAD to the Region
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MARAD’s Gateway Offices at key
U.S. ports.
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New York
Norfolk
Miami
Chicago
St Louis
New Orleans
Seattle
Long Beach
San Francisco
Houston (TBD)
“Gateway” Point of Access to
Another Network
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We work with the following on regional
projects focusing particularly on planning
and environmental issues
 MARAD HQ staff, state and local
authorities including MPO’s
 Congressional representatives at the
local district
 A broad range of port, shipper and
carrier stakeholders
What Else Do
Gateway Offices Do?
 Identify
transportation bottlenecks and
ways to improve freight movement
 Serve on National Port Crisis Team
reporting on regional and local events
 Work on environmental and community
challenges in the ports and their
intermodal connections
 Perform field reviews for various grant
programs
MS DOT & SASHTO
to MARAD Aug 3, 2009

“The I-10 corridor is much more than
a Highway and Maritime corridor. To
understand its depth and reach, state
and federal governments need to
consider the whole modal network as
interconnected rather than each mode
separately.” Mr. Butch Brown
MS DOT & SASHTO
to MARAD (cont’d)

“Regionally, the (Southeast) Alliance’s ports
and waterways play an integral role off the
I-10 Corridor but are only one piece of a
much larger modal system...This means
adopting a regional system perspective
between the modes, i.e. rail, truck, marine
vessel, aviation and pipeline, which works to
improve modal performance by utilizing
corridor operations.”
Major Freight Truck Bottlenecks
Source: Cambridge Systematics, Inc. for FHWA October 2005
North American Rail Network
(Bottlenecks & Congestion Areas)
Note: Atlanta area rail network most congested in South Atlantic
Energy Independence and Security Act of
2007 established the
America’s Marine Highway Program

Marine Highway Corridors: Designating
Corridors will integrate the Marine
Highway into the surface
transportation system and encourage
the development of multi-jurisdictional
coalitions to focus public and private
efforts and investment.
America’s Marine Highways:
Recommended Marine Highway:
I-10 between Texas and Florida
Recommended by Mississippi Department of Transportation w/the Southern
Assn of State Highway Transportation Officials on Aug 3, 2009
Projected Congestion
Along I-10 by 2020
Source: Wilbur Smith Associates & FHWA
Marine Highway Corridor
Recommendations Received
for Southeast US as of August 28th
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I – 10 Sponsor: Mississippi DOT
I – 40 : Oklahoma DOT & Arkansas
Waterway Commission
I – 49 : Port of Morgan City, LA
I – 55 : Southeast Missouri Regional PA
I – 65 : Ohio DOT
I – 95 : The I-95 Coalition
In development: I-2 Beltway, Puerto Rico
Final Rule Anticipated Early Fall 2009
What is the Next Step?
Next Step:
Marine Highway Project Designation

Designating Marine Highway Projects is
aimed at mitigating landside congestion by
starting new or expanding existing services
to provide the greatest benefit to the public
in terms of congestion relief, improved air
quality, reduced energy consumption and
other factors. Designated Projects will
receive direct support from the Department
of Transportation.
Marine Highway Projects

DOT Support to Designated Projects May Include:
– Promote the Service with planners, private sector and decision
makers.
– Coordinate with ports, state DOTs, MPOs, government and
private sector to support the service.
– Pursue Memorandums of agreement with other Federal entities
that own or ship cargos.
– Designation on Secretary’s list of high-priority transportation
infrastructure projects to expedite permit review.
– Work with planners to incorporate in transportation planning.
– Assist with developing individual performance measures.
Final quote from MS DOT
application to MARAD

“Mississippi, in coordination with the
Southeast Alliance, understands the
dynamics of the multi-modal
infrastructure necessary for today’s
21st century economy. … The AMH
program will be integrated into the
surface transportation system
maximizing the development of
intermodalism in the region.”
Thank you for
welcoming me aboard!
Lauren Brand
305-890-6016
Lauren.Brand@dot.gov
www.marad.dot.gov
Marine Highway Projects

Application Evaluation Criteria
– Overall Benefit of the Project:
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Scope: How much freight or how many passengers would be
impacted?
Impact: Are the reductions in critical areas?
Public benefit: What are the benefits in congestion
reduction, energy savings, emissions, and safety?
– Return on Investment/Feasibility:
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Offsetting Costs: What publicly funded expenses does the
project alleviate?
Feasibility: Is it likely to achieve self-sustaining operation?
Cost Effectiveness (Government): What is the cost to the
government to support the project?