The University of Toledo University Transportation Center

Since October of 2005, UT has affiliated with the Great Lakes Maritime Research Institute (GLMRI), which is housed at the University of Minnesota-Duluth and the University of Wisconsin-Superior. GLMRI focuses on maritime freight research and education involving the Great Lakes including opportunities to expand shipping to relieve highway and rail congestion, lower costs, and reduce emissions.

UTis currently involved in two projects with GLMRI: one examines the economic advantages of expanding the Detroit-Windsor ferry crossing between the U.S. and Canada and the second collects data and prepares a GIS database of current freight movement in and around the Great Lakes. The river crossing between Detroit and Windsor was identified as one of the two most significant congestion choke points based on the Upper Midwest Freight study. The transportation information in the Great Lakes Maritime Database will be used to identify opportunities to employ short sea shipping to move freight between states and with Canada. Short sea shipping is widely used in Europe and Canada, and the transfer of this technology to the U.S. will be an important priority for the UT-UTC.