Maritime Administrator Sean T. Connaughton said that laying the foundation for a marine highways system, greater opportunities for American mariners, and a reorganization of the agency to make it more effective are significant steps he’s taken during his watch.
The Bush appointee in an interview with The Journal of Commerce Online during his last day at Marad said that the idea of short sea shipping has gained a firm foothold in the national transportation policy debate, and that the new Congress and incoming Obama administration are ready to take the next step.“We’ve made substantial progress on the marine highways program, and made it a legitimate alternative to surface transportation,” Connaughton said. “We just don’t have the money or the resources to pave our way out of our congestion, or energy and environmental troubles. We’re going to have to look to the waterways to move more freight. That’s on the table. We’ve been able to show that not only it’s needed, but to lay the groundwork for expansion.”
Marad has made progress, Connaughton said, in opening new job opportunities for American mariners in domestic and foreign fleets.
“I think we’re going to see a great expansion of that,” Connaughton said. “We’ve heard nothing but extremely positive feedback from shipowners and managers who hire Americans.”
Officially Connaughton’s appointment ends with the inauguration of Barack Obama on Jan. 20. The President-elect has selected James Caponiti, a longtime career official at the Department of Transportation and currently an assistant administrator at Marad, to assume the agency’s top management job.
Connaughton said he is considering several possibilities for the future. He said he would like to find an executive position within the maritime industry.
“We have been what we were supposed to be, an advocate for the industry and its interests,” Connaughton said (source: joc.com).
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