New weekly call will bring 52 ships per year to Tioga Marine Terminal.

John H. Estey, Esq., Chairman of the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority (PRPA) announced that Sea Star Line, LLC, a major carrier serving the US, Puerto Rico, and the Caribbean region, will begin calling PRPA’s Tioga Marine Terminal in Northeast Philadelphia beginning in April.  Sea Star Line will initiate a weekly ship call beginning on Friday, April 23, and expects to bring a ship to Tioga Terminal every Friday after that.  Sea Star will handle a variety of containerized cargoes, as well as roll on/roll off cargoes.  Tioga Marine Terminal is operated by Delaware River Stevedores, Inc.

“This is great news for the Port of Philadelphia, and for one of our most efficient terminals,’ said Chairman Estey.  “Tioga Marine Terminal has two container cranes, a mobile harbor crane, ample space for containers, an experienced labor force, and so many other attributes.  It’s a great fit for Sea Star Line.”

“To have fifty-two ships a year that we didn’t have before, that’s really saying something,” said PRPA Executive Director James T. McDermott, Jr.  “Over the course of a year, those ships will provide thousands of ILA man-hours to our labor force, supporting and expanding the family-sustaining jobs that are so important to our operations.  Indirect jobs, business revenues, state and local taxes, and many other economic spin-offs will also result.” 

The Port will see many diverse, new cargoes as a result of Sea Star Line. A typical Sea Star vessel at the Port of Philadelphia will include cargoes such as consumer goods, chemicals, and machinery.

In the company’s own announcement about its new service in Philadelphia, Sea Star Line President and Chief operating Officer Frank Peake extolled the virtues of the new service, concluding with the following: “Tioga Marine Terminal is an ideal partnership because it provides ready access to highways and intermodal facilities, quick gate turns, on-site warehouse space, reefer plug availability, heavy-lift cranes, and ample space.”

PRPA will provide further information about Sea Star Line’s new service once it commences next month.  Shippers who have an interest in this new service should contact PRPA’s Marketing Department at (215) 426-2600 at their convenience.