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The modern terms short-sea shipping (sometimes unhyphenated), marine highway, and motorways of the sea, and the more historical terms coastal trade, coastal shipping, coasting trade, and coastwise trade, all encompass the movement of cargo and passengers mainly by sea along a coast, without crossing an ocean. Oddly, this source uses both the hyphenated and unhyphenated forms in the same passage. ''Short-sea shipping'' (or a translation thereof) is the term used by the
European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
and commonly throughout the
Europe Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...
. Many English-speaking countries have used the British terms ''coasting trade'' and ''coastwise trade''. The United States maintained these term from its colonial era, including for
domestic slave trade The domestic slave trade, also known as the Second Middle Passage and the interregional slave trade, was the term for the domestic trade of enslaved people within the United States that reallocated slaves across states during the Antebellum perio ...
that shipped slaves by water from the Upper South to major markets, especially New Orleans. The US and began regulating general coasting trade as early as 1793, with "An act for enrolling and licensing ships and vessels to be employed in the coasting trade and fisheries, and for regulating the same", which passed Congress on 18 February that year. Over the years, it has been codified as
Title 46 of the United States Code A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify either generation, an official position, or a professional or academic qualification. In some languages, titles may be inserted between the f ...
, Chapter 551 (46 USC Ch. 551), "Coastwise Trade". Some short-sea ship vessels are small enough to travel inland on inland waterways. Short-sea shipping includes the movements of wet and dry bulk cargoes, containers and passengers around the coast (say from Lisbon to Rotterdam or from New Orleans to Philadelphia). Typical ship sizes range from 1,000 DWT (tonnes deadweight – i.e., the amount of cargo they carry) to 15,000 DWT with
drafts Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a vesse ...
ranging from around . Typical (and mostly bulk) cargoes include grain, fertilisers, steel, coal, salt, stone, scrap, minerals, and oil products (such as diesel oil, kerosene, and aviation fuel), containers, and passengers. In Europe, short-sea shipping is at the forefront of the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...
's transportation policy. It currently accounts for roughly 40% of all freight moved in Europe. In the US, short-sea shipping has yet to be used to the extent it is in Europe, but there is some development. The main advantages promoted for this type of shipping are alleviation of congestion, decrease of air pollution, and overall cost savings to the shipper and a government. Shipping goods by ship (one 4,000 DWT vessel is equivalent to between 100–200 trucks) is far more efficient and cost-effective than road transport (though the goods, if bound inland, have to be transferred and delivered by truck) and is much less prone to theft and damage. Roughly 40% of all freight moved in Europe is classified as short-sea shipping, but the greater percentage of this cargo moves through Europe’s heartland on rivers and not oceans. In the past decade, the term ''short-sea shipping'' has evolved in a broader sense to include point-to-point cargo movements on inland waterways as well as inland to ocean ports for shipment over oceans. The contrasting terms ''deep-sea shipping'', ''intercontinental shipping'', and ''ocean shipping'' refer to maritime traffic that crosses oceans. Short-sea shipping is also distinct from inland navigation, e.g. between two cities along a river.


Europe

In Europe, the main hub of short-sea shipping is
Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"Ne ...
, which is the largest European port, with Antwerp as a second. The Netherlands plays an important role in this, having developed a hybrid vessel designed to navigate the sea as well as the Rhine into the
Ruhrgebiet The Ruhr ( ; german: Ruhrgebiet , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr area, sometimes Ruhr district, Ruhr region, or Ruhr valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 2,800/km ...
. The Dutch and Belgian main waterways ( Maas,
Waal WAAL (99.1 FM "The Whale") is a commercial radio station licensed to Binghamton, New York. It airs a classic rock radio format and is owned by Townsquare Media. WAAL is the oldest FM radio station in the Binghamton metropolitan area. It is an ...
, Amsterdam-Rhine Canal,
Scheldt The Scheldt (french: Escaut ; nl, Schelde ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corresponding to ...
) locks and bridges are built accordingly. Because of congestion in the larger ports, a number of smaller (container)ports have been developed, and the same goes for the Rhine-ports such as
Duisburg Duisburg () is a city in the Ruhr metropolitan area of the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Lying on the confluence of the Rhine and the Ruhr rivers in the center of the Rhine-Ruhr Region, Duisburg is the 5th largest city in No ...
and Dortmund in
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. The ports of
Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...
,
Felixstowe Felixstowe ( ) is a port town in Suffolk, England. The estimated population in 2017 was 24,521. The Port of Felixstowe is the largest Containerization, container port in the United Kingdom. Felixstowe is approximately 116km (72 miles) northea ...
(now the largest port in the UK), and
Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...
also are significant in this shipping. In the Netherlands the sector has seen rapid growth, aided by a tax-enabled investment scheme. The traditional region for building "coasters" is the province of Groningen, where most wharfs have side-laying ship slides. The major trend is to have bare hulls made with cheaper labor in
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
or
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
and to finish them in the Netherlands.


Philippines

In
Philippine The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
law, short-sea shipping or coastwise trade is defined as the transport of either merchandise or
passengers A passenger (also abbreviated as pax) is a person who travels in a vehicle, but does not bear any responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination or otherwise operate the vehicle, and is not a steward. Th ...
between two seaports in the Philippines Only vessels with coastwise license secured from and issued by the
Maritime Industry Authority The Maritime Industry Authority ( fil, Pangasiwaan sa Industriyang Maritima), known by the acronym MARINA (), is an agency of the Philippine government under the Department of Transportation responsible for integrating the development, promoti ...
can legally engage in coastwise trade in the Philippines. Only vessels with certificate of Philippine registry are eligible for the license. The
Philippine coastwise emblem The Philippine coastwise emblem is a flag flown at main-mast of marine vessels engaged in coastwise trade in the Philippines. Coastwise trade in the country is defined as the transfer of either merchandise or passengers between two seaports in ...
must be hoisted at the main mast of engaged vessels when leaving or entering Philippine seaports.


US and Canada

Cargo movements on the
Great Lakes Waterway The Great Lakes Waterway (GLW) is a system of natural channels and artificial canals which enable navigation between the North American Great Lakes. Though all of the lakes are naturally connected as a chain, water travel between the lakes was i ...
and
Saint Lawrence Seaway The St. Lawrence Seaway (french: la Voie Maritime du Saint-Laurent) is a system of locks, canals, and channels in Canada and the United States that permits oceangoing vessels to travel from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes of North Ameri ...
system can be classified as short-sea shipping under this broadening of terminology. The St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation of Canada and its US counterpart, the St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation, have for the past several years promoted this concept under its marketing umbrella "Hwy H2O". The concept is intended to use existing capacity on the St. Lawrence – Great Lakes corridor in harmony with rail and truck modes to reduce overland congestion. Great Lakes Feeder Lines of Burlington,
Ontario, Canada Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
was the first company to operate a "fit for purpose", European-built short-sea shipping vessel, named ''Dutch Runner'', on the St. Lawrence Seaway under Canadian flag. During the winter of 2008–2009, it operated a weekly, fixed service between Halifax and St. Pierre et Miquelon, carrying
roll-on/roll-off Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are cargo ships designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses, trailers, and railroad cars, that are driven on and off the ship on their own wheels or using ...
, break bulk,
containers A container is any receptacle or enclosure for holding a product used in storage, packaging, and transportation, including shipping. Things kept inside of a container are protected on several sides by being inside of its structure. The term ...
, and refrigerated goods. Crew on the ship can load and unload it with the two 35-tonne cranes. Another Canadian firm, Hamilton-based McKeil Marine, operates a fleet of tug-and-
barge Barge nowadays generally refers to a flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but nowadays most are pushed by pusher boats, or other vessels ...
combinations; these have has been moving commodities such as tar, fuels, aluminum ingots, and break bulk cargoes for years on the
Saint Lawrence Seaway The St. Lawrence Seaway (french: la Voie Maritime du Saint-Laurent) is a system of locks, canals, and channels in Canada and the United States that permits oceangoing vessels to travel from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes of North Ameri ...
. Along the St. Lawrence River, McKeil Marine transports aluminum ingots from a smelter in Quebec to destinations in Ohio, a distance of . One barge carries the equivalent of 220 40-ton trucks. America's Marine Highway is a program to promote inland and coastal shipping. In 2001 the
Port of New York and New Jersey The Port of New York and New Jersey is the port district of the New York-Newark metropolitan area, encompassing the region within approximately a radius of the Statue of Liberty National Monument. It includes the system of navigable water ...
began its Port Inland Distribution Network (PIDN), a project to increase a network of inland points for shipping. Other features include strengthening rail-port connections. It is providing barge service to the Port of Salem in southern New Jersey on the Delaware River. In 2003 it started barge service to the
Port of Albany–Rensselaer The Port of Albany–Rensselaer, widely known as the Port of Albany, is a port of entry in the United States with facilities on both sides of the Hudson River in Albany and Rensselaer, New York. Private and public port facilities have existed ...
on the
Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...
in upstate New York, but this was suspended in 2006 after the end of funding for the start-up.Jean-Paul Rodrigue, Chap. 4: "Port Inland Distribution Network of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey"
, ''The Geography of Transport Systems'', Hofstra University


See also

*
Cabotage Cabotage () is the transport of goods or passengers between two places in the same country. It originally applied to shipping along coastal routes, port to port, but now applies to aviation, railways, and road transport as well. Cabotage rights ar ...
* Coastal trading vessel


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Short Sea Shipping Ship management