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Title 46 — ShippingRelease 119-73not60

§55603 Multistate, State, Tribal, and Regional Transportation Planning

Title 46 › Subtitle Subtitle V— Merchant Marine › Part D— Promotional Programs › Chapter 556— MARINE HIGHWAYS › § 55603

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary, after talking with federal, state, local, tribal, and private groups, can make plans to promote using marine highways to move people and cargo. If the Secretary does this, they can check how much marine transport appears in state, local, and tribal plans, ask state and tribal transportation agencies to add ferries and other marine options for regional and interstate travel, and encourage groups of states and tribes to study whether marine highways can reduce congestion, choke points, and other cross‑state travel problems.

Full Legal Text

Title 46, §55603

Shipping — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Secretary, in consultation with Federal entities, State and local governments, Tribal governments, and appropriate private sector entities, may develop strategies to encourage the use of marine highway transportation for transportation of passengers and cargo.
(b)If the Secretary develops strategies under subsection (a), the Secretary may—
(1)assess the extent to which States, local governments, and Tribal governments include marine highway transportation and other marine transportation solutions in transportation planning;
(2)encourage State and Tribal departments of transportation to develop strategies, where appropriate, to incorporate marine highway transportation, ferries, and other marine transportation solutions for regional and interstate transport of freight and passengers in transportation planning; and
(3)encourage groups of States, Tribal governments, and multistate transportation entities to determine how marine highways can address congestion, bottlenecks, and other interstate transportation challenges.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Prior Provisions

A prior section 55603, added Pub. L. 110–140, title XI, § 1121(a), Dec. 19, 2007, 121 Stat. 1761, which related to an interagency board to identify and seek solutions to impediments hindering effective use of short sea transportation, was repealed by Pub. L. 116–283, div. G, title LVXXXIII [LXXXIII], § 8332(d)(1), Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 4704.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

46 U.S.C. § 55603

Title 46 — Shipping

Last Updated

Apr 5, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60