Inland Waterways Transportation News

Demopolis Lock—which suffered a recent catastrophic failure—is a cautionary tale for other locks and those in Congress and the White House who may fail to see the urgency and importance of investing in the inland waterways system.The nation’s inland waterways lock and dam infrastructure, largely constructed in the 1930s, has seen modernization and rehabilitation across the system, albeit very slowly. Despite those efforts, lock failures continue, and the risk of failure persists.While…

Rarely does a vessel come along with the potential to radically change the way an industry operates, but one such vessel is set to hit the water in 2023.This new vessel, a towboat named Hydrogen One, is being developed by Louisiana-based Maritime Partners, the largest lessor of marine equipment in the U.S. It will be the first of its kind globally to run on emissions-reducing methanol-to-hydrogen generator technology—no diesel propulsion on board—as the maritime industry continues…

By a vote of 228 to 206, the U.S. House of Representatives approved the Senate-passed H.R. 3684, Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (the bi-partisan Infrastructure Package). The bill is headed to the President to be signed into law.For the nation’s inland waterways system, a historic $2.5 billion of 100% federal funding is provided for construction and major rehabilitation inland waterways projects. In addition, Capital Investment Strategy (CIS) navigation projects will be given priority.

In early October, Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI) reported in its newsletter Capitol Currents that the future of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2020 hung in the balance, with many unknowns for its chances of being signed into law during the Lame Duck session of Congress that just concluded in late December.But despite twists and turns and a roller coaster ride, WRDA was, indeed, passed by Congress on December 21 as part of the FY21 Omnibus Appropriations that included a $900 billion COVID Relief package.

We recently checked in with Tracy Zea, Waterways Council Inc.’s new President & CEO, on what’s in store for the U.S. inland waterways for the remainder of 2020.To start, give us some insight on your background and how you came to lead WCI.I was born and raised in Chandler, Ariz., and attended South Dakota State University, receiving a degree in Political Science. After college, I found my way to Washington, D.C. via an internship with Senator Thune (R-S.D.). After the internship, I was hired by the House of Representatives, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Waterways Council, Inc.’s (WCI) Board of Directors unanimously elected Tracy R. Zea as the organization’s new President and Chief Executive Officer. He will assume the new duties effective today.With a broad range of Capitol Hill, policy development and government relations expertise, Zea most recently served as WCI’s Vice President-Government Relations, advocating for WCI’s goals for authorizations and appropriations which support a modern, efficient, reliable inland waterways transportation system.

As the nation continues to be impacted by COVID-19, there are silver linings to the crisis: family time and togetherness, gratitude for what we had before it was taken away, and a chance to seek opportunities to be better and more productive.As funding bills related to the COVID-19 crisis move forward, there may be an opportunity for the nation to better itself by modernizing its infrastructure.Congress has, to date as of this writing, passed three phases of a coronavirus relief package.

Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI) offered praise for Congress, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ for the Corps’ Fiscal Year 2020 (FY20) work plan that lays out allocations for funds provided in the FY20 Energy & Water Development Appropriations bill toward the Corps’ civil works mission. The work plan was released late yesterday.Critical to the nation’s agricultural shippers and American family farmers, the Navigation and Ecosystem Sustainability Program (NESP) (Upper Mississippi River – Illinois Waterway System: IL…

President Trump’s Fiscal Year 2021 (FY21) budget request released on Monday is "astonishingly inadequate" says industry advocate Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI).The FY21 budget provides $0 for construction of ongoing priority navigation projects cost-shared through the Inland Waterways Trust Fund (IWTF); cuts funding for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Civil Works Mission by 22% ($5.967 billion, a $1.7 billion decrease from the FY20 enacted level); and proposes $1.8 million in new user fees on commercial waterways operators.Last fiscal year (FY20)…

USDA Study Underscores Value of Inland Waterways to U.S. Agriculture.On August 28, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue and Assistant Secretary of the Army (ASA) for Civil Works R.D. James toured Mel Price Locks and Dam in Alton, Illinois, and held a Town Hall Meeting to discuss the importance of the waterways,  agriculture and the U.S. economy. At the event, Secretary Perdue briefed agricultural and waterways stakeholders on a newly released study – Importance of Inland Waterways to U.S. Agriculture – from the U.S.

WCI/NGFA Urge NESP Infrastructure Project to Move Forward.The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) and Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI) today commended the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for releasing a significant new study that quantifies the cost-savings and competitive advantages that would accrue from investing in long-delayed improvements to inland waterways locks and dams on the Upper Mississippi and Illinois River system.The study, entitled, Importance of Inland Waterways to U.S.

Chairman & CEO, Campbell Transportation Company.Peter H. Stephaich is Chairman and CEO of Blue Danube Incorporated and Campbell Transportation Company. Currently, he is also Chairman of the Board of the Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI). Peter also serves on the Board of Directors of Blue Danube, a position that he has held since 1982. Serving the barge industry for over 30 years in a number of key roles, he also counts among his many qualifications his tenure(s) as Past Chairman and Past Treasurer of the American Waterways Operators (AWO)…

On February 12, 2019, Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) received Waterways Council, Inc.'s (WCI) 18th Annual Leadership Service Award for her continual championing of ports and inland waterways. She was presented the award by Wade Beasley, Business Representative, Carpenters Local 174, Chicago Regional Council of Carpenters. WCI President & CEO Mike Toohey said, “Senator Duckworth is an American hero, and a stalwart advocate for the inland waterways in her state of Illinois, and throughout the United States.

Bill now heads to White House for President Trump’s signature.Today, the Senate voted 99-1 in favor of America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018/Water Resources Development Act, otherwise known as WRDA 2018. The Bill passed in the U.S. House by unanimous voice vote (435-0) in August.“The passage of WRDA 2018 is a win for the Nation’s towboat operators, freight shippers, ports and labor and conservation groups that rely on an efficient inland waterways system,” said Mike Toohey, President and CEO of the Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI).

Just before the anticipation of good things to come on Valentine’s Day, on February 12, the inland waterways transportation industry was left feeling disappointed and puzzled after the release of the long-awaited Trump Administration infrastructure principles, and then the release of President Trump’s FY 2019 budget request. During the Presidential campaign, then-candidate Trump said he would undertake a $1 trillion infrastructure initiative that would focus on a wide array of projects, from sewer systems to bridges to Veterans Hospitals to rural broadband expansion.

Under the Government of India’s Sagarmala Program to promote port-led development, a master plan has been formulated for the 12 Major Ports. 142 port capacity expansion projects with an estimated cost of  INR 91,434 Crore (USD 14.3 billion) and capacity creation of 884 MMTPA have been identified in this master plan for implementation over the next 20 years. Out of these, 58 projects with project cost  of approximately INR  28,767 Crore (USD 4.5 billion)  have been approved. In 2015, an international benchmarking consultant conducted a study of the Major Ports which recommended 116 initiatives to enhance their efficiency and productivity to international benchmarks and unlock their capacity. Of the 116 initiatives, 85 initiatives have already been implemented.

Waterways Council, Inc. "WCI applauds President Trump’s visit to the heartland and for his speech today that will surely bring heightened attention to the investment needs of the inland waterways system. Our country has not seen this kind of leadership on infrastructure since President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s 1930s New Deal to build our locks and dams, or since the 1950s by President Dwight D. Eisenhower to construct the National Defense and Interstate Highway system. Today, Presidential…

The start of a new year often brings change, but in the nation’s capital, 2017 means a new President and Administration, and a new Congress. Waterways Council, Inc.’s objective remains the same as it has since our start in 2005: to advocate for a modern, efficient and reliable inland waterways transportation system. For WCI, achieving this means working from our “three-legged advocacy stool” approach to educating these new Washingtonians through direct lobbying, stakeholder support and outreach, and media relations.

Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI) today commended the work of Congress to pass the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) Act, of which the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA 2016) is included, by a vote of 78 to 21 during the lame duck session. WIIN/WRDA authorizes Army Corps of Engineers' work on locks and dams, dredging and other water resources projects. WCI applauded the efforts of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, led by Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA) and Ranking Member Peter DeFazio (D-OR), along with House Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment Chairman Bob Gibbs (R-OH) and Ranking Member Grace Napolitano (D-CA).

The Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI) praised the bipartisan leadership of Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Thad Cochran (R-MS) and Vice Chairwoman Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), and Senate Energy & Water Development (E&WD) Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Ranking Member Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) for the 30-0 vote approving the fiscal year 2017 appropriations bill that increases funding for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Civil Works Program. The Corps’ Civil Works mission funded in the Senate bill is $6 billion, an increase of $11 million above the FY 2016 enacted level, and $1.378 million above the President’s budget request. It restores the 23 percent cut to the Corps’ budget proposed by the Administration for FY ’17.

The FY ’17 Energy & Water Development (E&WD) and Related Agencies appropriations bill has been approved by the U.S. Senate in a 90-8 vote, significantly increasing funding in Fiscal Year 2017 for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Civil Works Program. The House version of this bill, which passed out of the Appropriations Committee last month, is awaiting floor action. Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI) President Michael J. Toohey underscored the work of Chairman Cochran and Senate Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), Senate E&WD Subcommittee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Ranking Member Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), as well as Senate Majority Leader McConnell, that was key to the passage of this strong funding bill.

Overhead crane and hoist manufacturer Ace World Companies has made its first appearance at the Inland Marine Expo, which took place for the third time this May at America’s Center Convention Complex in St. Louis, Missouri, on the banks of the Mississippi River. The expo is the annual trade show for the inland and intracoastal marine transportation industry, which is a target market for the manufacturer and its recently acquired business, Pullift Corporation, a provider of standard and custom material handling equipment, including winches. Camron Ghanemi, vice president at Ace, said, “I was encouraged by recent comments from Michael Toohey, the president of the Waterways Council, who referenced ‘record funding’ to modernize the nation’s inland waterways transportation system.

P3: An alternative to tolls or lockage fees in public-private partnerships for inland waterways. Within the generally sorry state of the U.S. inland waterways infrastructure, there are some locations where conditions are particularly dire. Among those in this latter situation are several locks and dams on the Illinois River, including the La Grange Lock and Dam and the Peoria Lock and Dam, both of which were completed in 1939. Both of them are on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, which is a dubious distinction for a major transportation facility of the twenty-first century.