Though the parties involved claim to have reached an eleventh-hour “tentative deal” to avoid a national rail strike, Americans are still right to worry about the impact rail disruptions could have on supply chains. Already, businesses and consumers are bracing for shortages, delays, and further price increases on top of existing inflation. But as businesses scramble for domestic shipping alternatives, one option stands out as significantly less viable than it should be: namely, ships.
Water transport should be a far more significant mode of freight transportation in the United States, particularly given the fact that nearly 40 percent of Americans live in coastal counties. Yet just 6 percent of domestic freight is transported by water in the United States, compared to 36 percent in the European Union. The reason? A century-old law that has long outlived the circumstances that birthed it.
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