US Committee on the Marine Transportation System

06/21/2025

04/29/2025

The Transportation Research Board conference on Innovative Science and Technologies to Improve Security and Safety of the Marine Transportation System has called for presentations. This conference will be held June 23 – 26, 2025 in Washington, D.C. Go to: https://trb.secure-platform.com/a/page/marinetransport
Presenters and attendees will discuss cybersecurity, marine facility and waterway security, port and vessel security, cargo carriage safety, mariner safety, climate resilience, risks related to adopting new goods movement technologies and energy systems, maritime safety data systems, and collaboration mechanisms among all MTS-related stakeholders and sectors.
This bi-annual conference is supported by the CMTS.

The TRB Conference on Innovative Science and Technologies to Improve Security and Safety of the Marine Transportation System will be held June 23 – 26, 2025 in Washington, D.C. This conference will seek to identify research needs, barriers, and potential progress related to overall maritime securi...

01/17/2025

National Multimodal Freight Network (NMFN)

The USDOT Multimodal Freight Office is establishing the National Multimodal Freight Network to assist States in strategically directing resources toward improved system performance for the efficient movement of freight on the Network, to inform freight transportation planning, to assist in the prioritization of Federal investment, and assess and support Federal investments to achieve the national multimodal freight policy goals and the national highway freight program goals.

Please provide comments, feedback, and proposed modifications by Thursday, February 27, 2025.

https://www.transportation.gov/freight-infrastructure-and-policy/NMFN

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

01/13/2025

The Transportation Research Board conference on Innovative Science and Technologies to Improve Security and Safety of the Marine Transportation System has called for presentations. This conference will be held June 23 – 26, 2025 in Washington, D.C. Go to: https://trb.secure-platform.com/a/page/marinetransport

Presenters and attendees will discuss cybersecurity, marine facility and waterway security, port and vessel security, cargo carriage safety, mariner safety, climate resilience, risks related to adopting new goods movement technologies and energy systems, maritime safety data systems, and collaboration mechanisms among all MTS-related stakeholders and sectors.

This bi-annual conference is supported by the CMTS.

The TRB Conference on Innovative Science and Technologies to Improve Security and Safety of the Marine Transportation System will be held June 23 – 26, 2025 in Washington, D.C. This conference will seek to identify research needs, barriers, and potential progress related to overall maritime securi...

12/31/2024

Did you know that the Times Square "dropping ball" on New Year's Eve draws on a maritime tradition?

In the early 1900's, New York Times owner, Adolph Ochs, wanted to top his previous New Year's Eve celebrations, after being banned from shooting off fireworks. Ochs asked the Times' chief electrician, Walter Palmer, to come up with a New Year's Eve spectacle that didn't involve ashy firework debris raining down on revelers.

According to a 1965 piece in Newsday (Nassau Edition), Palmer was inspired by the clock on the downtown Western Union Telegraph Company building, which for decades had dropped an iron ball from its rooftop every day at noon.

That harkens back to a longstanding maritime tradition of ports dropping a ball at a specific time every day, allowing ship captains to precisely adjust their navigational instruments.

England's Royal Observatory installed the first known "time ball" in 1833, inspiring over a hundred other locations around the world. Only a few still use them daily, including the Royal Observatory and the U.S. Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C.

Palmer devised an even bigger production, ultimately covering a 700-pound ball of iron and wood with 100 light bulbs to descend a pole that stood 50 feet above the 400-foot tower.

The ball was built by a young immigrant metalworker named Jacob Starr, whose company, Artkraft Strauss, would go on to lower the ball for most of the 20th century — a process that was done by hand using more than half a dozen men and a length of rope.

Source: https://www.gpb.org/news/2024/12/31/why-do-we-drop-ball-on-new-years-eve-the-times-square-tradition-explained

Photo: Royal Observatory, Greenwich, London.

Join us here for up-to-date information on the Nation's marine transportation system (MTS) and the work of our Federal MTS agencies.

12/25/2024

Best wishes for the holidays and New Year.

12/06/2024

Biden-Harris Administration Announces Nearly $5 Million in
Grants to Improve Movement of Goods Along United States Marine Highways

On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) awarded $4.85 million in grants to five marine highway projects across the nation via the United States
Marine Highway Program (USMHP). The funding will enhance the movement of goods along our navigable waterways while expanding existing waterborne freight services in Louisiana,
Puerto Rico, Washington, and West Virginia.
https://www.maritime.dot.gov/newsroom/investing-america-biden-harris-administrationannounces-nearly-5-million-grants-improve

For more information on the Marine Highway Program, go to https://www.maritime.dot.gov/grants/marine-highways/marine-highway

The United States has a versatile and expansive network of navigable waterways, including rivers, bays, channels, coasts, the Great Lakes, open-ocean routes and the Saint Lawrence Seaway System.

10/09/2024

Attending the annual convention and expo of the American Association of Port Authorities of Port Authorities, October 28 - 30, 2024 in Boston, MA?

Join the U.S. Committee on the Marine Transportation System (CMTS), along with NOAA's National Ocean Service on Monday, October 28th, 1 - 2:30 p.m. EDT, in a discussion about the findings from the recent Request for Information (RFI) to "Identify Barriers to Planning for Climate Resilience". This RFI looked to identify what planning guidance, data sources, and grants U.S. ports have used in planning for long-term environmental change, and to identify if there are any barriers to action in planning for the future.

This workshop will include an interactive portion to share additional ideas! Check the workshop in the AAPA registration for more information.

://aapa.getregistered.net/2024-annual-convention-and-expo

The premier event for the seaport industry! This year’s AAPA Annual Convention & Expo in Boston, MA, offers comprehensive programming focused on the future of port prosperity. Join us as we explore how ports are expanding opportunities and growing businesses through strategic investments, innovati...

09/27/2024

September 26th Marked World Maritime Day!

IMO World Maritime Day theme for 2024 is "Navigating the future: safety first!" The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) is the main and most important international treaty concerning the safety of merchant ships. The SOLAS Convention contains 15 chapters covering a variety of topics.

2024 marks 50 years since SOLAS was adopted.

CMTS extends gratitude for the many expert professionals that support the safety and security of our marine transportation system!

.S. Coast Guard Administration - MARAD U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Headquarters

09/24/2024

Congratulations to the Department of Transportation and CMTS members Maritime Administration - MARAD for delivery of this amazing new training ship!