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Florida ports adding services, enhancing infrastructures
The Atlantic Journal of Transportation
Paul Scott Abbott, AJOT
The Miami River, from which independent operator ply the Caribbean
trade, is slated for long-awaited dredging to begin by 2001.
Add the US Senate's recent approval of Caribbean Basin Initiative
(CBI) parity and the river, which would rank among that state's
five top ports if combined figures were available, is on the
brink of a boom.
Antillean Marine Shipping, the leading carrier on the river,
this month added a new weekly service to Providenciales in the
Turks and Caicos Islands. Sara C. Babun, Antillena's president,
said she is enthusiastic about the impending dredging and the
prospects of being able to operate fully loaded vessels without
having to wait for high tide -- something that is not possible
now because of sediments that line the river's already-shallow
bed. Sailings which now load at 10 1/2 feet for the lowest tide
will be able to load at 15 feet.
John Lambrakopoulous, vice president of Bernuth Agencies,
the No. 2 carrier on the river, said his firm is looking to add
new services in early 2000.
"The future seems to be bright," Lambrakopoulous
said. "And, of course, there's always the big 'if' of further
markets opening down the Caribbean, such as Cuba, where, if that
ever happens, especially now that there is some kind of an effort
to at least be a little bit more receptive, you might say, to
the overall situation down there, then hopefully we'll have a
greater future looking ahead of us."
Fran Bohnsack, executive director of the Miami River Marine
Group, said, "The river is going to be dredged, despite
the skepticism of many, and all elements of the river community
-- residents, businesses, industry and downtown development --
are all going to experience the benefits. The river's cargo
carriers have survived the threats posed by worldwide consolidation
of deep-water shipping lines and improved their efficiency at
the same time."
"General environmental and safety compliance is good,
and local government is paying attention to the industry in a
positive way," she continued. "MRMG membership has
grown by one-third, and the replacement of old bridges is underway.
These elements augur well for continued vitality of the Miami
River as home to independent cargo activity."
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