USDOT Allocates $190 Million for Great Lakes and Inland River Marine Port Upgrades

DULUTH, Minn. — U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and the Maritime Administration (MARAD) announced on Monday the distribution of $190 million in Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP) grants to finance heavy-duty dock reconstructions, automated electric container cranes, and intermodal freight rail connections across ten commercial marine ports in the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins.

The maritime investments target strategic industrial ports—including the Port of Duluth-Superior, the Port of Cleveland, the Port of Milwaukee, and the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor—that handle critical steel, iron ore, agricultural grain, and wind turbine components.

Modernizing the Maritime Supply Chain and Eliminating Diesel Emissions Waterborne commercial shipping produces 75 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions per ton-mile than long-haul highway trucking, yet aging 1950s-era timber wharves and diesel cranes have constrained cargo handling velocity.

"Our inland waterways and Great Lakes ports are vital economic lifelines that move American steel, agricultural grain, and manufacturing components to the world," Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said at the Port of Duluth-Superior. "By investing $190 million in modern dock walls, high-capacity electric cranes, and rail connections, we are cutting shipping delays, lowering freight costs for American manufacturers and farmers, and reducing air pollution in port communities."

Port Modernization Projects Funded Key awards include:

• Port of Duluth-Superior (Minnesota/Wisconsin): $38 million to reconstruct deteriorating general cargo dock walls and install heavy-lift roll-on/roll-off infrastructure.
• Port of Cleveland (Ohio): $30 million for modernized bulk dock electrification and covered steel storage warehouses.
• Port of Milwaukee (Wisconsin): $26 million for an agricultural export intermodal container terminal.
• Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor (Indiana): $24 million for deepwater berth stabilization and rail loop expansion.
• Six additional river and lake terminals receiving between $10 million and $20 million.

Great Lakes port directors and maritime trade federations commended the federal investments, emphasizing that modernized berths keep American commercial waterways competitive in global trade.