Commercial waterborne transportation that does not transit an ocean. It is an alternative form of commercial transportation that utilizes inland and coastal waterways to move commercial freight from major domestic ports to its destination.

The term “shortsea shipping” refers to intermodal transports of intra-european cargo. The major part of distance is covered by ship.

Port-to-port goods movement on the Great Lakes. In the RTP context, these would likely be mainly among ports serving the GTHA or between these ports and transfer points to/from ocean-going vessels downstream from the St. Lawrence Seaway.

Refers to the practice of adding a waterborne leg to an intermodal shipment that normally would travel by road or rail. The objective is to reduce travel time, avoid congested routes and reduce cost. It also holds out the promise of improving energy efficiency and lowering greenhouse gas emissions.