PortMiami has welcomed the start of the Lone Star Express with the arrival of the 5,000 teu container vessel Maersk Danang.
The Lone Star Express is part of a recently launched service between Asia and US Gulf and East Coast, which includes a weekly rotation at PortMiami. The service is part of the 2M Alliance, comprising Maersk Line and MSC.
Port rotation includes: Qingdao, Ningbo, Shanghai, Xiamen, Yantian, Busan, Cristobal, Houston, Mobile, PortMiami, Balboa, and Busan.
PortMiami has been steadily capturing new trade and in fiscal year 2015 it posted its strongest container traffic in over a decade with a total of 1,007,800 teu. Additionally, Miami has been ranked among the fastest-growing seaports in the nation by trade industry experts.
“We welcome the Maersk Danang to PortMiami, and thank the 2M Alliance for their confidence in the port team,” said port director and CEO Juan Kuryla. “The new Lone Star Express service is a major enhancement to the port’s cargo offerings between Asia and US Gulf and East Coast.”
PortMiami officials attribute the continued growth to more than US$1 billion of completed capital infrastructure projects. Miami has the deepest shipping channel in the Southeast US at -50/-52 ft (-15.24/-15.85 m) and is the only seaport south of Virginia capable of handling neo-Panamax vessels.
In addition, officials stated that Miami offers its users a fast access tunnel connecting the port directly to the US Interstate Highway System as well as the Florida East Coast Railway on-dock intermodal rail service, which provides rapid turnaround time for the movement of both import and export goods while delivering a seamless network reaching 70% of the US market within four days.
