Bridgeport Port Authority
330 Water Street
Bridgeport, CT 06604-4920
Contact: Joseph Riccio
Tel: (203) 384-9777
The Bridgeport Port Authority Barge Container Feeder Terminal moved a step closer to reality with the conditional naming of the Bridgeport Barge Service, LLC as the new terminal operator.
The Bridgeport Barge Service is an independent company operated by David D’Addario & Associates of Bridgeport and Pace Motor Lines of Stratford. The BPA Board of Directors considered three Requests for Proposals in arriving at its selection.
Two other operators submitting bids were Logistec of New Haven and Columbia Coastal Transport, LLC from Liberty Corner, NJ.
BPA Executive Director Joseph A. Riccio said BBS submitted the most comprehensive plan to become the terminal operator. He also cited both companies’ extensive relationships with terminals and shipping lines in the Greater New York and Southern New England areas.
He also pointed out that it was unique to have a trucking company involved because it indicates that the trucking industry also recognizes the overcrowded conditions of the highways in Connecticut and at the terminals in New Jersey and New York. The Barge Feeder Container Service project began three years ago, funded through a $1.5 million grant from the state.
“The two companies that form BBS have extensive relationships with customers that will make use of the terminal,” Riccio said. “They have a long, upstanding tradition as excellent companies and submitted an innovative plan.”
The Bridgeport Barge Service still has to negotiate additional contracts to complete its application.
“The Bridgeport Barge Service has some work to do,” Riccio said. “They still have to negotiate agreements with the terminals in NY and NJ, Logistec and the International Longshoreman’s Association. They must also negotiate a satisfactory lease with the BPA.”
The terminal operator will be responsible the unloading of containers from barges transported by water from New York/New Jersey ports. The terminal operator must also:
• Generate the growth of cargo for the barge service;
• Develop a reliable and efficient service to store and deliver containers on time and in good condition;
• Book, schedule, plan and discharge freight;
• Maintain the 500,000-square-foot storage terminal planned for construction;
• Keep costs and results competitive;
• Generate additional employment and business opportunities in the Bridgeport region.
Frank T. Gennarini, Senior Vice President of D’Addario Associates sees the barge container service as a great economic opportunity for the Greater Bridgeport area.
“We’re very pleased to have been selected as the winning bidder,” Gennarini said. “It will bring an influx of business activity and create more jobs. We’re looking forward to undertaking this project, which will be a great economic benefit to the area.”
The Barge Container Feeder Service will be part of the Bridgeport Maritime Complex, which also houses Derecktor Shipyard. The planned warehouse will stand on 16 acres of the reclaimed site of the former Carpenter Steel plant. It is expected to turn a profit in the first quarter of the second year of operation, according to Riccio. To accommodate the anticipated growth of water traffic, the BPA has a commitment from the state for $5.5 million for a dredging and bulkhead project that it hopes to undertake next year. The BPA plans to select a tug and barge operator to transport freight by water by this summer.
The Barge Feeder Container Service is also expected to remove more than 70,000 trucks from the I-95 corridor. Trucks now carry freight from New York and New Jersey ports throughout Southern New England.
Riccio pointed out that the Bridgeport Barge Container Service is one of the first services to start in the country. New Jersey to Albany now operate a barge service. Riccio anticipates seeing the first barges unloading at the Bridgeport Harbor site later this summer.
“This is an exciting project. Bridgeport is certainly taking the lead by initiating this barge container feeder service,” Riccio said. “The future for the barge service and Bridgeport Maritime Center looks extremely promising.”
The BPA is a quasi-public entity that has jurisdiction over the entire Bridgeport Harbor port. It also operates the ferry terminal facility, Water Street Dock and has jurisdiction over several marine cargo terminals.
