Florida Seaport System Plan - SeaCIP

Florida Seaport System Plan
3.0 Florida’s Seaport System –
Trends and Conditions
This section provides an overview of Florida’s seaport system, building upon
the work undertaken annually by the Florida Seaport Transportation and
Economic Development (FSTED) Council. Data available from “A Five-Year
Plan to Achieve the Mission of Florida’s Seaports, 2009/2010-2013/2014”
have been reviewed and incorporated, as appropriate, to support development of
a high-level description of Florida’s seaport system. 1
3.1 System Overview and Performance
Florida’s 14 deepwater seaports (see Figure 3.1) represent a critical component
of Florida’s multimodal transportation system, functioning as domestic and
international trade gateways, regional economic engines, and major
transportation hubs.
Florida’s seaports handle a variety of traffic, including containerized and
noncontainerized cargo as well cruise passengers. In recent years, a shift in
business operations of the industry has resulted in many commodities being
shipped in containers, more than ever before. In most cases, any cargo able to
be put into containers has been shifted to this type of transport. The standard
measurement of a cargo container is a 20-foot equivalent unit (TEU).
Therefore, one 40-foot container would be counted as two TEUs.
Noncontainerized cargo representing key bulk and breakbulk commodities are
measured in short tons. The majority (as high as 75 percent in some markets)
of cargo shipped to Florida through a Florida port is consumed within the State.
Passenger movement is measured by the number of revenue passengers cruising
from Florida’s ports. All but one cruise port in Florida are home-based ports,
meaning the passengers embark and disembark at the same location. Port of Key
West operates as a port-of-call, meaning it provides a stop for many cruise ships
but is not a home port.
1
The FSTED Council produces “A Five-Year Plan to Achieve the Mission of Florida’s
Seaports.” This document is updated annually and provides a profile for each port,
highlighting international trade trends; cargo and cruise operations at Florida’s seaports; and
seaport capital improvement and access needs.
Florida Department of Transportation 3-1
December 2010