For the purposes of this part:
(a) Administrator. The Maritime Administrator, Maritime Administration, U.S. DOT, who has been authorized by the Secretary of Transportation to administer America's Marine Highway Program.
(b) Applicant. An entity that applies for designation of a Marine Highway Corridor or Project under this regulation.
(c) Coastwise Shipping Laws. Laws, including the Jones Act, as set forth in Chapter 551 of Title 46, United States Code.
(d) Corridor Sponsor. An entity that recommends a Corridor (including a Connector or Crossing, as described below) for designation as a Marine Highway Corridor. Corridor sponsors must be public entities, including but not limited to, Metropolitan Planning Organizations, State governments (including Departments of Transportation), port authorities and Tribal governments, who may submit recommendations for designation as a Marine Highway Corridor.
(e) Department. The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT).
(f) Domestic Trade. Trade between points in the United States.
(g) Lift-on/Lift-off (LO/LO) Vessel. A vessel of which the loading and discharging operations are carried out by cranes and derricks.
(h) Marine Highway Corridor. A water transportation route that serves as an extension of the surface transportation system that can help mitigate congestion-related impacts along a specified land transportation route. It is identified and described in terms of the land transportation route that it supplements, and must, by transporting freight or passengers, provide measurable benefits to the surface transportation route in the form of traffic reductions, reduced emissions, energy savings, improved safety, system resiliency, and/or reduced infrastructure costs. Routes that cannot relieve landside congestion (i.e.; those to/from islands) are not eligible for designation under this program. In addition to ``Corridors,'' prospective sponsors can recommend Marine Highway ``Connectors'' and ``Crossings'' for designation as described in paragraphs (h)(1) and (h)(2) of this section:
(1) Marine Highway Connectors are routes that will provide substantial linkages to or between the larger corridors, and serve, in conjunction with a corridor, to move freight and/or passengers into, out of or within a region.
(2) Marine Highway Crossings are routes that provide relief to congested border crossings, bridges, and tunnels or offer a shorter route than the landside alternative. Although they may not parallel a corridor or connector, crossings may provide relief to a corridor or connector, or to local or regional passenger and freight transportation systems. Crossings may include cross-harbor and inter-terminal passenger and/or freight services.
(i) Marine Highway Project. A new Marine Highway service, or expansion of an existing service, that receives support from the Department and provides public benefit by transporting passengers and/or freight (container or wheeled) in support of all or a portion of a Marine Highway Corridor, Connector or Crossing. Projects are proposed by a project sponsor and designated by the Secretary under this program.
(j) Marine Highway (or Short Sea Transportation): The carriage by vessel of passengers and/or cargo (intermodal containers, trailers, car floats, rail ferries and other cargoes loaded by wheeled technology) that is loaded at a port in the United States and unloaded either at another port in the United States, or that is loaded at a port in the United States and unloaded at a port in Canada located in the Great Lakes-Saint Lawrence Seaway System, or loaded at a port in Canada located in the Great Lakes-Saint Lawrence Seaway System and unloaded at a port in the United States. For the purposes of this specific program, routes and services that do not offer potential relief to a landside transportation route (i.e.; to/from islands) do not fall within this definition.
(k) Project sponsor. Project sponsors must be public entities, including but not limited to, Metropolitan Planning Organizations, State governments (including State Departments of Transportation), port authorities and Tribal governments, who may submit applications for designation as a Marine Highway Project.
(l) Roll-on/Roll-off (RO/RO) Vessel. Any vessel that has ramps allowing cargo to be loaded and discharged by means of wheeled vehicles so that cranes are not required. This includes, but is not limited to trailers, car floats and ferries, including rail ferries.
(m) Secretary. The Secretary of Transportation.
(n) United States Documented Vessel. A vessel documented under 46 U.S.C. Chapter 121.