Brian Edward Moore - Comments

For this program to really work- you should try to simultaneously place incentives for existing shippers to divert from their established highway choices. My suggestion is to chose an initial "pilot" interstate, and impose significant road use taxes which will encourage shippers to consider the marine highway option. Otherwise shippers are most likely to stick with what is fast, known and works and is already set up. My suggestion is a 3 year steeply increasing road use fee that allows shippers time to plan and manage the changes which will be necessary to shift longer stretches of the shipping process to the slower, but potentially more efficient marine highway. The ideal pilot interstates are 95 and 5. They are close to a coast with an existing robust port infrastructure, which will facilitate the transition. Spin off benefits besides increasing shipping efficiency include: reduced traffic on the busy Interstate corridor, reduced traffic deaths, reduced traffic tie-ups and traffic congestion derived air pollution in several of the nations largest urban areas. Win-wins all. Trucks paying the fee to use the pilot interstate would get a sticker showing they are authorized to drive for that year. Adjacent roads would not be affected- only the interstate. Yes, this would drive some shippers to use less expeditious roads, but presummably, the extra time incurred from traveling these roads would soon convince them that if they are going to slow down anyway- they might as well put the box on a ship! Along with dis- incentives to use roads, you need to establish a single "entry" tarrif for containers. Even if they need to be handled in each intermediary port, they should only incur a tarrif at the actual port of debarkation- since the interim handling is solely a function of where the box is stored on the ship rather than a shipper determinant. The current system where they are charged in each port is unfair. After doing the pilot roads for a few years, you may find that other roads also can benefit- clearly I 35 along the mississippi is another good candidate. Cheers, and best of luck with this great initiative.