Under a $1.6 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation Maritime Administration (MARAD), The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey will make investments to improve the barge program that transports containers between terminals in New York and New Jersey.

The grant, obtained with the assistance of New York and New Jersey’s Congressional delegation, will increase the barge system’s cost-effectiveness and reliability for shippers. These factors, in turn, will help the Port Authority, its terminal operators and ocean carriers to grow the existing barge program, which last year moved 35,000 containers, resulted in 60,000 fewer trucks on the region’s roadways, and eliminated 1,600 tons of CO2.

But the MARAD grant also helps create the New York Harbor Crane Operators Training Center (COTC), the first of its kind in the country.

The COTC’s three state-of-the-art simulators will help train members of the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) to operate the newest generation of ship-to-shore and yard cranes, thus optimizing the loading and discharge of container barges. The award of $492,480 from the MARAD grant will be matched by $328,320 committed by both the New York Shipping Association (NYSA) and Port Newark Container Terminal, plus an in-kind contribution of a simulator from the NYSA.

The full grant will also support:

• Enhancing the fender system at Berth 6 in Port Newark, specifically the Red Hook Barge Terminal, to help protect both Port Authority-owned barges and the berths from damage during docking and undocking operations. The MARAD grant award of $157,500 will be matched by $192,500 from the Port Authority.

• The purchase of two new high-tech machines to augment existing container handling equipment at Red Hook Container Terminal. The MARAD grant award of $982,316 will be matched with $327,439 from Red Hook Container Terminal.