No shippers, no U.S. short sea initiative

No shippers, no U.S. short sea initiative Industry representatives at a June 18 House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee forum agreed the United States would fail to build a substantive marine highways program for containerized freight that without shippers resoundingly on board.
   'We need to incentivise shippers,' said Thomas A. Allegretti, president and chief executive officer for the American Waterways Operators, who led off the roundtable-type discussion organized by Rep. John L. Mica, the ranking Republican on the House committee. 'We need to create a greater cargo demand rather than vessel supply. Stimulating vessel construction without cargo should be discouraged.'
   'The biggest challenge for short sea startups is the container moves,' said Rainer Lillienthal, director of business development for the Port of Houston. 'Shippers are sometimes very reluctant. We're up against the just-in-time mind-set driven into the minds of every traffic manager.'
   Short sea may offer shippers a cheaper option to transport their containers between U.S. ports, but it will require them to accept and efficiently manage their freight flows through a transport mode that's inherently slower than traditional truck and rail moves.
   Houston has encouraged certain shippers in its area to consider short sea transport. A barge service was recently launched between the ports of Houston and Brownsville, Texas, which has found acceptance among steel pipe shippers.
   'Incentivizing shippers is absolutely critical,' said Jeff Keever, deputy executive director for the Ports of Virginia, who noted the Mid-Atlantic port's plans to launch a container-on-barge service between Norfolk and Richmond, starting Oct. 1.
   The Virginia port authority estimated that about 66,000 container moves would be eligible for the barge service. The Ports of Virginia has received a grant to help offset the cost to start the operation. From the marine terminal perspective, the container-to-barge move itself is a significant cost, Keever said.
   However, Mark Yonge, president of Maritime Transport & Logistics Advisors, warned the House committee members that the vessel investment side of the short sea initiative should not be neglected. He recommended the development of a marine highway-centric Title XI U.S.-flag vessel construction program managed by the Maritime Administration. 'New technology needs to come down the line,' he said.
   Allegretti, told American Shipper on the side, that he doesn't believe that vessels should be the first priority of short sea programs, noting there's sufficient capacity available to get these services started.
   'You have to have the customer base in place before you put the vessel in place,' he said. 'Our industry is littered with the carcasses of incentivized vessel programs that didn't work.' ' Chris Gillis