As the nation’s largest tonnage and one of the busiest ports, there has always been a need to make improvements and keep logistics efficient. Being open for business more than 100 years also comes with trouble spots along the way. However, Port Houston is focused on making infrastructure improvements before any serious problems come under fire. In particular, the area of freight mobility has grown tremendously over the years and this is largely due to the Port Houston teams that make these projects possible.

Meaning of Freight Mobility

What is Freight Mobility you ask? In short, freight mobility is a broad term that refers to cargo vehicles – trains, trucks or airplanes – traveling to different destinations around the world transporting various goods. Most organizations in the logistics or supply chain sector rely on the Port’s freight mobility group to monitor how efficiently cargo is moving and see where infrastructure improvements need to be made. Port Houston relies heavily on the freight mobility department to advocate for and facilitate the investment in the freight network around the Houston region.

Freight Mobility Projects at Port Houston

Everyone knows that large projects require a lot of teamwork, collaboration as well as time management and freight mobility is no exception. For the port, there are multiple cross-functioning departments — including Construction, Operations, Legal, Grants, Real Estate, and more — that contribute to make key enhancements around our terminals and drive growth. No projects can happen without our cross-functional teams at the port and the partnerships we build with outside entities. Some of closest partnerships have been with Harris County, the regions railroads, Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) and local Houston associations. Keeping these relationships open has allowed the port to get many freight mobility projects completed and in turn help the local communities.

In 2019, the port received a 50-50 grant shared with the Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) and the Port Terminal Railroad Association (PTRA) to help complete the port’s Broadway Double Track project. This project added a second railroad track near Turning Basin Terminal and Broadway street (inside Loop610), substantially completing double tracking of the PTRA which will improve cargo rail mobility to/from the port. This $23 million investment not only increased efficiency of freight movement but reduced emissions and improved safety.

In 2020 freight mobility improvements have continued across various areas of Port Houston. TxDOT has been a big contributor to the Port Road Expansion project and Barbours Cut Blvd/SH-146 Intersection project. More details about these specific projects can be found here: /road-widening-projects.

Additional developments are being made around Port Houston’s Jacintoport terminal, including the Peninsula Road Improvement project and Sheldon Road Expansion project. The Peninsula Road Improvement project has been mostly completed, with enhancements being made to roads and rail crossings improving overall cargo mobility, safety and air quality. Peninsula Road itself will by widened from 2 to 4 lanes allowing trucks to easily get in/out of Jacintoport. This was one of the most congested and dangerous areas within the port region and the $12+ million project, with80% funded by Rider 48 funds from the Texas Legislature, has made it one of the safest and most efficient regions of the port.

The Sheldon Road Expansion project also is vital to improved efficiency around Jacintoport terminal. The first phase of this project includes widening the road from 2 to 4 lanes for easier truck accessibility. The port was awarded $1.2 million with a 50-50 cost share with Rider 38 funds from TX Legislature and Harris County. Additional phases will include more improvements to Sheldon Road with around $18 million in further enhancements.

As Port Houston continues to grow, freight mobility will persist as a vitally important piece for enhancing efficiency with port roadways and railways. Port Houston teams are tireless working to keep up with the growth and maintain outstanding relationships with our stakeholders and communities.

The post Freight Mobility Improvements Require Team Effort appeared first on Port Houston.

Ecommerce Steadily Rising

 “With a trillion-dollar year on the visible horizon, coupled with the size and continued growth of the Houston area, I wholeheartedly believe Houston’s industrial market is primed for a windfall of e-commerce leasing activity in the coming months and years,” said Justin Tunnell of Lee & Associates. 

The City of Houston is still in its infancy for e-commerce, as it has historically been served by regional distribution centers in Dallas, noted Justin Robinson of Stream Realty Partners. “However, that model has rapidly changed due to accelerated delivery expectations of consumers,” Robinson said. “As a result, e-commerce companies have established facilities in Houston to more efficiently and effectively meet consumer needs.”

Distribution Center Locations

Much of the cargo activity has occurred around Port Houston. Stream has been involved with Principal Real Estate’s Bay Area Business Park, which has grown a 3.3 million square foot Class AA industrial development and minutes away from the Bayport and Barbours Cut Container Terminals.

A host of distribution centers already had been taking shape in the greater Houston region in recent years. For example, furniture distributor IKEA acquired more than 143 acres at Generation Park in northeast Houston for a distribution center that will top 1 million square feet. Additionally, Dollar Tree, Inc. is building a new distribution center in Rosenberg, investing $130 million in the facility. Retailer Five Below has completed and is occupying its new 860,000-square foot facility located in Houston suburb Conroe. Retailer Ross Dress for Less is building a large distribution center in Waller County, southeast of Brookshire. Amazon has also expanded its footprint around the city building two more centers to bring its total to five distribution centers in the Houston area. Proximity to the Houston Ship Channel remains a prime area for distribution centers keeping logistics practical and more efficient.

Growth for the City and Port Houston

“Port Houston continues to be among the fastest-growing container ports in the country, fueled by an increasing number of import distribution centers in the Houston region and a robust manufacturing base in the state of Texas,” NAI wrote.

That growth is projected to continue, CBRE said in a newly released report.

“Houston is a growing port of entry to supply the Southcentral U.S, which is projected to increase in population by 7.1 percent over the next five years,” stated the report, entitled “The Changing Flow of International Trade.”

The growth of imports has factored into the decision-making by Port Houston leadership to continue to expand infrastructure. Three new Neopanamax electric cranes for the Bayport Container Terminal, which is still being built out, are under construction now. The $35 million ship-to-shore cranes, which are for Wharf 5 at the Bayport Container Terminal, are expected to be operational in the summer of 2021 and will be capable of handling 18,000-TEU ships. The cranes will bring Port Houston’s fleet of ship-to-shore cranes to 29.

Retailers in Texas and beyond are banking on that kind of growth and investing in Houston. The port and city drive home Houston’s fast-emerging image as a major gateway for imports.

The post E-Commerce Triggering Need For Distribution Centers Near Port Houston appeared first on Port Houston.

Port Road Construction And Bayport Terminal

The main entrance for Bayport Container Terminal lies off Port Road. One project we’re working on is expanding Port Road from 4 to 6 lanes between Highway 146 and the Bayport Container Terminal bridge. In addition to the road expansion, it will also improve necessary drainage facilities for Port Road along with drainage for the 95-acre tract of Port Houston-owned property.

The Port was awarded $9.675 million in grant funding through the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Texas Mobility Fund. This specific fund from TxDOT provides a method of financing for the construction, reconstruction, acquisition and expansion of Texas state highways and roads. The funds help pay for a portion of the larger project which will cost close to $18.9 million in total.

The first phase of the Bayport Container Terminal opened in 2007 and is now about 50% complete. When fully developed, it will have a total of 7 container berths with the capacity to handle 2.3 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs). The terminal will include 376 acres of container yard and a 123-acre intermodal facility. Adding an inbound and outbound lane to Port Road will make a tremendous difference in freight efficiency.

Barbours Cut Blvd Construction and BCT Terminal

Port Houston handles roughly 70 percent of the containers that move through the Gulf of Mexico and is the 6^th largest container port in the nation. Barbours Cut was our original container terminal which opened in 1977 and has seen some big improvements over the years as well.

Barbours Cut Terminal’s most recent project involves intersection improvements at Barbours Cut Blvd and SH-146. This is the main intersection in front of the terminal which sees a lot of transportation traffic each day. With this enhancement there will be 2 additional northbound right-turn lanes from Barbours Cut Blvd onto SH-146. Additionally, traffic signals will be improved to facilitate freight fluidity and air quality.

This is a minor project completely funded and reconstructed by the TxDOT approximately costing $500,000 dollars. It started in July 2020 and is projected to be finished later this month or early next month.

Barbours Cut features 6 container berths, 6,000 feet of continuous dock space, 230 acres of paved marshaling area, and 255,000 square feet of warehouse space. Additionally, there’s a roll-on/roll-off platform, a LASH dock, and an Intermodal rail service with dock-to-rail connection servicing. Today the terminal is undergoing a modernization program to increase cargo handling efficiency and capacity from 1.2 million TEUs to 2 million TEUs when completed.

The amount of cargo coming through Port Houston’s container terminals has continued to increase steadily over the years, and there are no signs of slowing down.

The post Road Widening Projects for Better Terminal Traffic Flow appeared first on Port Houston.

Caption: Port Chairman Janiece Longoria, Port Commissioners Clyde Fitzgerald and John Kennedy and Brian Fielkow, CEO of Jetco Delivery Co. with Harris County Judge Ed Emmett.

Port Houston participated at the Harris County International Trade and Transportation Conference, hosted by Harris County Judge Ed Emmett's office Dec. 5.

Executive Director Roger Guenther served on a panel with Mediterranean Shipping Company and MTS Logistics that focused on creating capacity for more cargo and freight in the region.

“We have room to grow; we are planning for the future,” Guenther said regarding capacity and the availability of equipment at the port’s facilities. He also shared that the port is looking at customer demand, freight mobility, terminal yard space and vessel size considerations.

One of out of every three exported container from Port Houston contains plastic resins, noted Guenther.

Jim Crane, owner of the World Series winning Houston Astros and the CEO of Crane Capital Group, was the keynote speaker during the event and discussed a variety of topics, including the port.

“The more we invest in the port, the more we can do,” Crane said. ‘We also have three great railroads here. We have the ability to run more business.”

There was also a polyethylene market overview by IHS Markit and a trucking and real estate panel.

Port Houston's FTZ Program and Economic Development Manager Shane Williams was a moderator during a foreign trade zone session. Port Houston manages FTZ 84, which is one of the most successful foreign trade zones in the United States.

The post Harris County International Trade and Transportation Conference Focuses on Freight Mobility appeared first on Port Houston.

Port Houston leadership and staff with U.S. Rep. Brian Babin.

Port Houston leadership and staff attended the Alliance for I-69 Texas Annual Luncheon on November 19.  

“I-69 is the freight route for Texas; it touches every port in the state,” shared Loyd Neal, Nueces County Judge and chairman of the Alliance for I-69 Texas.

“Our future depends on I-69’s completion,” he noted. “We will be able to move the world’s goods much quicker and better.”

Planned as a freight corridor across the U.S. from Mexico to Canada, the I-69 route in Texas stretches from Texarkana to Brownsville.  A total of $3.4 billion in I-69 projects have been authorized by the Texas Department of Transportation. The funds are used to build the system incrementally, and TxDOT is continuing to bring more projects into development.

Luncheon keynote speaker U.S. Rep. Brian Babin, whose district includes the Port of Houston, addressed the development of the next transportation infrastructure investment bill and the potential opportunities for freight infrastructure, including I-69. Babin is a member of the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Babin said that Texas cannot allow a weak link in the supply chain and he commended the work of the port and industry leaders for continuing to maintain progress going on road and infrastructure projects like I-69.

The post The I-69 System: The Alternate Route for Texas appeared first on Port Houston.

The Port Commission renewed Port Houston’s membership with the Alliance for I-69 Texas during January’s Port Commission meeting.

Former Polk County Judge John Thompson, who previously headed the organization, provided the Port Commission the Alliance’s latest update and was praised by Port Chairman Janiece Longoria.

 “The I-69 organization is a vital portion of the Houston supply chain,” said Longoria, a member of the Alliance. “It keeps transportation moving and has been successful securing federal funding.”

Port Houston has always been in the big picture regarding freight mobility and extending the market reach of the port complex, Thompson noted.

Port access is one component of Houston’s highway system, and I-69 is a landmark project that has made significant progress in continuing to improve that access in the region. The highway currently runs about 200 miles and connects through several Texas counties.  

The Alliance works with Harris County, the Texas Department of Transportation and other local, state and federal authorities to continue its mission and relay the importance of its future efforts. The organization has a 10-year unified transportation plan, and Thompson noted “it takes decades and generations to build a highway such as this.”

The post I-69 Alliance Vital to Port Supply Chain appeared first on Port Houston.

Port Houston’s Sr. Director of Trade Development John Moseley provided the port’s 2018 outlook at the International Transportation Management Association Houston chapter’s monthly luncheon Jan. 10.

Moseley reported that total container volume of total (loaded and empty) containers for 2017 was up 13 percent, with a 66 percent increase in steel.

Forbes.com recently listed that Port Houston is the number one fastest growing port in terms of imports. Moseley stated that this is driven largely by Houston’s population growth, housing and distribution opportunities. The expansion of the Panama Canal and diversions from the West Coast have been contributing factors as well.  Strong exports are also anticipated due to more petrochemical companies expanding their plastics and resins operations within the next couple of years.

“What makes us unique is that we are one of few container ports in the U.S. that operates its container terminals which allows us to directly impact the customer experience,” said Moseley. Some of port’s the most recent investments are the port’s three new super-post Panamax cranes at its Barbours Cut Container Terminal as well as expanding its truck gate hours at the Bayport Container Terminal.

ITMA is a member-driven organization for companies and professionals that are involved in international transportation logistics. Port Houston continues to be a steadfast liaison driving regional commerce.

The post Port Houston Participates at ITMA Luncheon appeared first on Port Houston.

Port Houston staff participated at the 2017 Harris County International Trade and Transportation Conference at NRG Park Oct. 31.

Executive Director Roger Guenther served on a port and Hurricane Harvey supply chain panel, while Chief Port Operations Officer Jeff Davis discussed port operations during a resin exports and packaging session.

The annual conference brings together representatives connected to the transportation industry to learn about the latest challenges, technologies and trends affecting their businesses.

Harris County and its surrounding region is known as a gateway to North America and a center for global commerce.

“What is important is how freight gets to where it needs to go. Freight drives the Texas economy,” said Harris County Judge Ed Emmett, who welcomed the attendees.

During the port panel with Port Houston, Port Freeport, the Port of Corpus Christi and the Port of Beaumont, moderator Curtis Spencer, president of IMS Worldwide, Inc. said, “These Texas ports will be a return on investment for exports.”

Houston's 10 area refineries represent 12 percent of the U.S. refining capacity. 

ExxonMobil and other refineries along the Houston Ship Channel are expanding capacity for an increased demand of plastic resins and petroleum-based products. “Each supplier is working to develop a supply chain model that fits its unique needs,” said Perry Padden, Americas Logistics and Distribution Manager for ExxonMobil Chemical Company.

“I think that the Port of Houston is taking some great steps,” added Brian Fielkow, Jetco Companies representative on port operations and planning for future resins.

Houston is the largest export port in the nation.

The post Harris County International Trade and Transportation Conference Highlights Houston Infrastructure and Economy appeared first on Port Houston.