SWUTC Research Project Description
Assessing the Potential for Gulf Coast NAFTA Maritime Trade Corridors
University: University of New Orleans
Principal Investigator:
Bethany Stich
Gulf Coast Research Center for Evacuation and Transportation Resiliency
(504) 280-6520
Project Monitor:
Captain Douglas J. Grubbs
Crescent River Port Pilots Association
(504) 583-3217
Funding Source: USDOT
Total Project Cost: $51,144
Project Number: 600451-00118
Date Started: 9/1/13
Estimated Completion Date: 12/31/14
Project Summary
Project Abstract:
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was enacted in 1994 with the expressed intent of reducing barriers to trade. However, transborder congestion and delays between the United States and Mexico threaten this goal. Maritime shipping offers a modal alternative for NAFTA trade with the potential for strengthening the resiliency of the North American transportation system as well as alleviating congestion for overland modes. Regional maritime trade, known as short sea shipping or marine highways, could bolster economic connections between Mexico and the Gulf Coast of the United States. This study assesses the potential for Gulf Coast NAFTA maritime shipping corridors. The research plan will document current trade patterns and infrastructure, analyze potential opportunities for trade expansion, and analyze the policy barriers that need to be addressed to strengthen these trade corridors. The study will produce findings and recommendations applicable to state, national, and international policymakers.
Project Objectives:
This research initiative will assess the potential for NAFTA maritime trade corridors between Mexico and the Gulf Coast of the United States. The project will survey and document current trade patterns and supporting infrastructure for transborder freight transportation. By analyzing current and projected commodity flows, the study will identify opportunities for increased Gulf of Mexico trade. A comprehensive analysis of policies — national and transnational — will evaluate how the policies support or impede NAFTA maritime trade corridors. The synthesized findings from the study will extend the research into NAFTA maritime trade corridors and highlight opportunities for strengthening the multi-modal resiliency of the North American transportation system.
Task Descriptions:
Task 1: Collection and Review of Literature, Reports, Policies, and Trade Documents
The UNOTI team will gather and review the relevant literature about NAFTA trade corridors and regionally-oriented maritime shipping (short sea shipping, marine highways, etc.). Literature, reports, and other documents will be drawn from academic journals, trade publications, government reports, and conference proceedings. A representative sample of literature can be found in the references section of this proposal. The policy review will focus on NAFTA and the Merchant Marine Act of 1920 (better known as the Jones Act).
Task 2: Assessment of current commodity flows and existing infrastructure
In order to identify opportunities for NAFTA Gulf Coast maritime corridors it is important to understand the current patterns of trade and existing infrastructure. For this task the UNOTI team will draw on the data sources from the United States Department of Transportation including the Freight Analysis Framework (FAF3) and North American Transborder Freight Data. The data analysis will concentrate on commodities with the potential for containerized trade. Data collection and analysis will include both overland modes and maritime trade between Mexico and the Gulf Coast. In addition to the data from US Government sources, this phase of research will also collect data from company websites and trade publications to document existing and former containerized services in this trade corridor. To complete this task the team will gather data and evaluate existing infrastructure with a focus on Gulf of Mexico port facilities.
Task 3: Identification of opportunities and barriers for trade expansion
The data collection and analysis of Task 2 will be further refined with a specific focus on opportunities for trade expansion. Potential opportunities include commodities that currently travel on overland routes between Mexico and the Gulf Coast. The analysis will also use the information on regional containerized trade for opportunity expansion. Barriers for trade expansion for this task will concentrate on the assessment of infrastructure. Infrastructure barriers could include capacity issues, lack of intermodal connections, and congestion.
Task 4: Application of policy analysis to current and potential trade patterns
Based on the extant literature on post-NAFTA freight transportation as well as short sea shipping in North America, existing policies – both national and transnational – are likely significant barriers to strengthening Gulf Coast NAFTA maritime trade corridors. The UNOTI team will apply the policy analysis focusing on NAFTA and the Jones Act from Task 1 to the findings from Task 2 and 3 about the potential for Gulf Coast NAFTA Maritime Trade Corridors. Additionally, this task will produce policy recommendations to strengthen these trade corridors.
Task 5: Final analysis and report
This study will further the existing literature on post-NAFTA trade, regional maritime shipping, and maritime policy by examining an understudied region in terms of international trade: the Gulf of Mexico. The project will conclude with a report detailing study background, methodology and findings. Additionally, the study will likely produce presentations for conferences such as the Transportation Research Board (TRB) Annual Meeting and the International-Urban Freight Conference (I-NUF). Finally, the study should produce an article for publication in a journal such as Maritime Policy & Management or the Journal of Transportation Geography. The study will provide the foundation for future research on international maritime trade between Gulf Coast states and countries in the Gulf of Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean.
Implementation of Research Outcomes:
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was enacted in 1994 with the expressed intent of reducing barriers to trade. Since that time, however, transborder congestion and delays between the United States (US) and Mexico threaten achievement of this goal. As a partial mitigation strategy, maritime shipping offers a modal alternative for NAFTA trade with the potential for not only strengthening the resiliency of the North American transportation system, but also alleviating congestion for traditional overland modes. To that end, Gulf Coast economies are preparing for increased shipping activity in both vessel size and commodity volumes upon completion of the Panama Canal expansion by 2016. This study assesses the potential for maritime shipping corridors in the Gulf of Mexico between the US, Mexico, and Cuba. We document current trade patterns and infrastructure, analyze potential opportunities for trade expansion, and analyze the policy barriers that need to be addressed to strengthen these maritime trade corridors. The prospect of reduced transborder congestion, increased system resilience, and expanded economic cooperation with Cuba has opened a policy window for more deliberate coordination between national and state governments to make the necessary infrastructure investments and policy changes to bolster maritime shipping capacity.
Impacts/Benefits of Implementation:
The project findings are in essence a plan to improve economic conditions in the Gulf Coast Megaregion, establish a basis for improving the social conditions in Cuba and Mexico and addressing congestion associated with international trade, present and future.
Web Links:
Final Technical Report