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Ground Transportation News

27 May 2021

Wärtsilä Developing Autonomous Container Shuttle Service

(Photo: Wärtsilä)

Finnish marine equipment and technology company Wärtsilä said on Thursday it is working to develop an autonomous, emissions-free intra-port, inter-terminal container shuttle that would help address the emerging capacity bottleneck for internal container transportation.The project is part of an international alliance headed by the Port of Rotterdam Authority, which has this month been awarded nearly €25 million in EU funding to implement projects aimed at sustainable and smart port logistics.

25 Feb 2021

Kitsap Transit Acquires Vessel from San Francisco Bay Ferry

Solano (Photo: WETA)

Bremerton, Wash. ferry operator Kitsap Transit said it has purchased the secondhand passenger vessel Solano for approximately $1 million from the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA),The sale closed last Friday following approval by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). The federal government has an interest in the 125-foot high-speed ferry that dates back to 2004, when the City of Vallejo, Calif., used a federal grant to buy the 320-passenger catamaran for $11,165,604 from Anacortes, Wash.

16 Feb 2021

Cold Snap Shuts Houston Ship Channel

Illustration only - Credit:wifesun/AdobeStock

A deep freeze that hit Texas over the weekend wrought more havoc on the U.S. energy sector on Tuesday, curbing output in the largest U.S. oil field, knocking out a fifth of the nation's refining capacity, and shutting a key shipping channel in Houston.Historic cold has knocked out roughly 4 million barrels per day of refining capacity, more than one-fifth of national capacity, according to Reuters calculations. About 500,000 to 1.2 million bpd of crude production has also been affected…

23 Sep 2020

Cruising Pause Has Major Impact on Florida's Economy

© Tamme / Adobe Stock

The cruise industry has certainly been among businesses hardest hit by the economic impacts of COVID-19. But the industry-rocking fallout extends well beyond the cruise lines themselves, extending through cities throughout Florida where canceled sailings are resulting in loss of revenue to public ports, government at all levels, and private companies that do business with cruise lines.These conclusions are contained in the latest Fact Finding 30 report that was released today by Fact Finding Officer Commissioner Louis E. Sola, of the Federal Maritime Commission.

29 Jul 2020

Port of Seattle Shelves Plans for New Cruise Terminal

(Photo: Port of Seattle)

Plans to develop a new cruise terminal at the Port of Seattle have been derailed by the coronavirus pandemic. The port announced Tuesday it has called off a request for industry proposals for a joint investment to build and operate a proposed new cruise terminal to serve the Alaska market.“Our current focus remains on public health,” said Port of Seattle Executive Director Steve Metruck. “We continue to work with public health partners and cruise stakeholders to determine the enhanced procedures that will make our cruise passenger terminals and facilities safe for the community…

10 Mar 2020

Passengers Sue Over Coronavirus-hit Cruise Ship

(Photo: Port of Oakland)

A Florida couple who was aboard the coronavirus-hit Grand Princess ocean liner has sued the ship’s owner for more than $1 million, claiming the company put profits over safety and did not have proper screening protocols in place.Ronald and Eva Weissberger of Broward County, Florida sued Princess Cruise Lines Ltd, a unit of Carnival Corp, alleging the company caused them emotional distress and trauma as they fear they will develop the COVID-19, a flu-like disease caused by the…

10 Mar 2020

Grand Princess Docks in Oakland

(Photo: Port of Oakland)

Weary passengers aboard a cruise ship idled at sea for days by a coronavirus outbreak erupted in cheers on Monday as the vessel sailed into San Francisco Bay en route to the Port of Oakland and the next, unexpected phase of their voyage - two weeks of quarantine.The 2,400 passengers, who have been largely confined to their staterooms since Thursday, were to begin disembarking on Monday for transport to quarantine stations or hospitals, depending on whether they are well or need immediate medical attention.Except for those with acute illness…

11 Jan 2019

Crew Travel: Safety & Security in Shipping

Despite notable breakthroughs in technology and an overdue increase in conversations regarding safety at sea, the very nature of the marine industry means that risk is inevitable.Piracy remains a prominent concern in certain regions, for example, around the Gulf of Aden. According to statistical data provided by ICC International Maritime Bureau (IMB) , 107 ships were hijacked or were subject to attempted attacks by pirates between January-June 2018. This figure has risen by 20 per cent in comparison to data collected in 2017 and only further highlights the need for adequate safety measures. Even if your organizations’ activities aren’t near to one of the affected regions…

13 Apr 2016

Tenants Sign on PDX Logistics Center Phase III

The Port of Portland Commission today approved a 14-acre, 50-year lease with locally based Capstone Partners and its investment partner PCCP, LLC to develop Phase III of the PDX Logistics Center. At more than one million square feet, the PDX Logistics Center will have a total of five state-of-the-art buildings; two of which are already fully leased to trade and logistics tenants. The project, located within the Portland International Center (south of Northeast Airport Way), provides tenants with immediate access to I-205, close proximity to airport freight and transportation services near Portland International Airport, and is within walking distance to TriMet’s Airport Max light rail line and mixed-use Cascade Station (shopping center, office buildings and hotels).

05 Feb 2015

Intelsat, Kymeta Enter Satellite Tech Partnership

 An Intelsat satellite (Photo courtesy of Intelsat)

Intelsat S.A. and Kymeta Corporation today announced an agreement to design and produce flat, electronically steerable, Ku-band satellite antenna solutions for the Intelsat EpicNG high throughput satellite (HTS) platform. The first Intelsat EpicNG satellite is expected to launch in late 2015. Kymeta’s flat and thin satellite tracking antennas will be designed to work with Intelsat’s satellite fleet, providing connectivity in sectors for which traditional antennas are not currently practical or feasible, including the maritime industry.

05 Feb 2014

Port Everglades to Renovate Cruise Terminal

Photo: Port Everglades

Port Everglades will begin the renovation for its sixth cruise terminal in five years this spring as Terminal 4 is modernized through an expansion and reconfiguration effort that will provide the cruise line industry with a modern dual flow facility just in time for the 2014/2015 cruise season. In addition, the adjacent Slip 2 will be extended by 250 feet for a total 1,150 feet of berth length to accommodate larger cruise ships calling at Port Everglades. The Slip 2 extension is slated for completion by the end of 2016.

29 Jan 2014

Blu Logistics Brings Rate Management In-House

CargoSphere,  cloud-based global rate management solution and confidential Rate Mesh network for the ocean and air transportation and logistics industries, has announced the completion of Blu Logistics’ integration with CargoSphere’s freight rate management solution. Blu Logistics, a global logistics company offering sea and air freight services, customs brokerage, ground transportation, and warehousing, previously outsourced freight rate and contract management. By changing over to a self-managed system Blu Logistics has significantly reduced the cost of managing this business process area.

29 Oct 2013

Iraqi Port of Basra Container Terminal Opens

NAWAH logo

NAWAH Port Management (NPM), a business unit of North America Western Asia Holdings (NAWAH), in partnership with the General Company for Ports of Iraq, has launched the first phase of a containerized terminal at Al Maqal Port, also known as the Port of Basra. The opening ceremony marked the completion of an essential yearlong phase for NAWAH and the modernization project for Al Maqal, culminating in the initiation of commercial operations at the newly containerized Berth 14. This…

21 Feb 2013

Matson Expands Savannah Operation

Photo: Georgia Ports Authority

Part of regional boom in third-party logistics providers. Matson Logistics, a leading provider of multimodal transportation, warehousing, and distribution services throughout North America, has established new distribution center space in Savannah. “Our new operation expands on our ability to move retail goods in through the Port of Savannah,” said Mark Ferzacca, assistant vice president of sales for Matson Logistics Warehousing. Matson has contracted for 65,000 square feet, with the ability to increase to 125,000 square feet.

24 May 2012

Singapore's Second Cruise Terminal Set to Welcome First Ship

'Voyager of the Seas': Photo credit Wiki CCL

The 28,000-square-meter terminal, which was built at a cost of 500 million Singapore dollars (400 million U.S. dollars) and operated by the SATS-Creuers Cruise Services, will effectively double Singapore's berth capacity. The terminal has the capability to dock ships of up to 220,000 gross register tonnage (GRT) and measuring up to 360 meters in length with a hull draft of up to 11.5 meters. It also has a spacious arrival and departure hall comprising 80 check-in counters and up to 40 immigration counters…

16 Mar 2011

Larkin Rejoins Crowley as VP Sales & Customer Care

Photo courtesy Crowley Maritime Corporation

Frank Larkin has rejoined Crowley Maritime Corporation as vice president of sales and customer care for the company's liner services and logistics groups. He is domiciled in Jacksonville and reports to Steve Collar, senior vice president and general manager, logistics; John Hourihan, senior vice president and general manager, Latin America services; and John Douglass, senior vice president and general manager, Puerto Rico and Caribbean services. Leveraging his commercial background…

11 Nov 2008

Fednav - Complete IMOS Solution

Veson Nautical, the US-based developer of software solutions for the commercial maritime community, announced that Fednav Limited of Montreal, a Canadian ocean-going, dry-bulk ship owning, operating and chartering group, has chosen to implement the full complement of Veson Nautical’s Integrated Maritime Operations System (IMOS). Fednav Limited will implement IMOS to manage their chartering and operations departments worldwide as well as link IMOS to their present accounting system, Oracle Financials. IMOS will handle all voyage operations for Fednav’s fleet, which concentrate on the transportation of bulk and breakbulk cargoes on a worldwide basis. Fednav Limited, headquartered in Montreal, is a privately owned shipping company.

15 Oct 2001

Royal Caribbean Delays Nordic Empress, Cancels Upcoming Cruise

Royal Caribbean International announced that Nordic Empress would delay its return to Philadelphia from Bermuda due to a storm that hit Bermuda Thursday night with wind gusts of 80 miles per hour. Royal Caribbean also canceled the next Nordic Empress sailing, scheduled to depart Sunday, October 14. Nordic Empress was docked at Bermuda's West End when the storm struck. made to delay the ship's normal departure from Bermuda, which would have been Friday morning. Nordic Empress is expected to depart Bermuda Saturday morning and arrive in Philadelphia by noon Monday. "The safety and comfort of our guests is always our highest priority," said Jack Williams, president of Royal Caribbean International. Guests booked on the cancelled October 14 cruise will receive a full refund.

05 Mar 2004

Feature: Halimar Shipyard to the Rescue

In the notoriously cyclical and fickle marine business, it is not surprising that occasionally an owner winds up with unfinished hulls and has to move them to another shipyard for completion. A recent example of this is a contract for five utility boats and one 145-ft. supply boat for use in the Gulf of Mexico. But as they say one man's nightmare is another man's dream. All of the boats had finished hulls, so they could be towed to another shipyard for completion without expensive ground transportation. The owner also had some machinery and parts that he furnished and that was also sent with the hulls in the last quarter of 2002. At about the same time, shipyard management pro Bill Hidalgo, Sr.

13 May 2002

Tampa Port Leads Florida In Trade With Mexico

Tampa Port Authority Director George Williamson announced Mexico is the Port of Tampa's number one trading partner, leading the 13 other Florida ports in trade with the state's southern NAFTA neighbor. The Port of Tampa transported more than two million tons of goods in 2001, a 47 percent increase in Tampa-Mexico trade since 1999. Mexico & Tampa Bay: Trade and Tourism Ties Conference. Businesses relying on ground transportation are considering other distribution alternatives, as trucking issues at the U.S.-Mexico border intensify. The recent suit filed by labor, environment and trucking industry groups to keep Mexican trucks off U.S. roads has businesses questioning the future of shipping goods by land between the two countries.

14 Jan 2000

S.F. Bay Ferry Authority Gets Approval

Under a plan spelled out in SB 428, by state Senator Don Perata (D-Alameda), a new panel will be created to oversee the development of a proposed network of high-speed ferries serving the entire San Francisco Bay Area. The new panel will be called the San Francisco Bay Area Water Transit Authority. Governor Gray Davis signed the bill last year, giving the Transit Authority the go-ahead to prepare a detailed plan for expanding ferry services in the San Francisco Bay Area for the legislature's approval. The authority's 11-member board will be made up of local elected officials, environmentalists, business leaders and transportation experts; four appointed by the Governor and two each appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules and the Assembly Committee on Rules.