The U.S. Maritime Administration has selected the port of Baltimore and its partners, the Port of New Bedford in Massachusetts and Port Canaveral in Florida, for the opportunity to apply for funding under the America's Marine Highway Program.

The federal program is intended to encourage shippers to transport cargo by water instead of using the nation's highways.

Under the initiative, the partnership among the three ports proposed developing a marine highway that would link the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and southern regions. The administration advanced the partnership's application for further analysis.

hanah.cho@baltsun.com

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