The project will support expanded barge service between vancouver washington and the port of morrow oregon along the federally designated m 84 columbia river and snake river corridor

Tidewater Barge Lines Inc. received a $990,000 Project Grant from the Maritime Administration under the United States Marine Highway Grants program (CFDA 20.816) on September 25, 2025, with a completion date of December 31, 2027. The grant funds the acquisition of a Tier 4 diesel container handler capable of lifting loaded municipal solid waste containers weighing up to 70,000 pounds for deployment at the Vancouver, Washington terminal. This equipment will enable the company to expand barge service operations between Vancouver, Washington and the Port of Morrow, Oregon along the federally designated Marine Highway 84 corridor (Columbia River and Snake River route), diverting containerized freight and municipal solid waste shipments from congested regional highways to water-based transportation.

The grant supports the Marine Highway program's core objective of mitigating landside transportation congestion and expanding water-based freight alternatives. Performance metrics require quarterly measurement and reporting of unitized freight movements (in twenty-foot equivalent units, metric tons, or cubic board meters) transported on the designated marine highway route and vehicle miles traveled avoided through modal shift to barge service. These deliverables align with the program's focus on demonstrating economic competitiveness benefits and quantifiable public benefits through reduced highway congestion and improved freight transportation efficiency along the Columbia-Snake River corridor.

Grant funding will support the acquisition of a container handler enabling tidewater to divert container volume from congested highways to marine highway 84 m 84 with additional barge shipments of municipal solid waste from the western regions of oregon and washington to a landfill in eastern oregon. Activities to be performed container handler vancouver terminal the recipient will acquire a tier 4 diesel container handler that is capable of lifting the heavy weight of loaded municipal solid waste MS) containers 70000 pounds for use as the primary container handler at the vancouver terminal. Deliverables expected outcomes from page 9 schedule g of the grant agreement. Measure freight movements. Category and description economic competitiveness calculate the amount of unitized freight by tonnage volume transported on the designated marine highway route teus metric tons or cubic board meter CBM movement. Measurement frequency quarterly. Measure highway vehicle miles traveled VMT avoided .category and description economic competitiveness calculate the VMT by obtaining the measurement frequency quarterly. Measure category and description measurement frequency quarterly. Intended beneficiary tidewater barge lines INC. Subrecipient activities none.