THE new container vessel OOCL Iris operated by Orient Overseas Container Line travelled from Asia on the 91-day roundtrip Trans-Pacific ECX1 loop, which stops in Hong Kong, Yantian, Xiamen, and Shanghai before arriving in New York and then continuing down the east coast to Savannah and Charleston.

The arrival of the OOCL Iris emphasises the importance of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey's ongoing investments to accommodate the increasing numbers of larger cargo ships and to ensure the Port of New York and New Jersey remains competitive as a domestic and global leader, reports AJOT.

In 2016, the Port Authority and the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) completed a project that began in 1999 to deepen the harbour to 50 feet.

In 2019, the Port Authority completed the raising of the roadway of the Bayonne Bridge to a navigational height clearance of 215 feet, allowing the world's largest container ships to access terminals in New York and New Jersey.

Currently, the Port is again working with USACE to increase the depth of the pathways to the marine terminals at Port Jersey and Newark Bay to 55 feet (an increase of five feet) to accommodate these larger ships.

The Port of New York and New Jersey is the busiest seaport on the US East Coast and among the top three busiest in the country.