Regional Spotlight: The Virginia Port Authority (VPA) The Jamestown Docks that greeted many travelers and served as a launch site for commerce and trade and are today the largest port complex in the United States, vital to international businesses which depend on Virginia's ports for world-wide access to the marketplace.  The Virginia Port Authority (VPA) is the state's leading agency for international transportation and maritime commerce, charged with operating and marketing the marine terminal facilities through which the shipping trade takes place.  The agency owns four general cargo terminals: Norfolk International Terminals, Portsmouth Marine Terminal, Newport News Marine Terminal, and the Virginia Inland Port in Front Royal; all of which are operated by its affiliate, Virginia International Terminals, Inc.  VPA has benefited from a steady increase since 2001 in each of its Hampton Roads terminals in cargo tonnage, TEUs, and container units.  Virginia's strategic mid-Atlantic location and unparalleled transportation infrastructure offer steamship lines and shippers unbeatable access to two-thirds of the U.S. population with more than 75 international shipping lines and one of the most frequent direct sailing schedules of any port. Virginia has the best natural deepwater harbor on the U.S. East Coast. Fifty-foot-deep, unobstructed channels provide easy access and maneuvering room for the largest of today's container ships. Virginia ports are located just 18 miles from the open sea on a year-round, ice-free harbor. Virginia ports have long maintained a reputation for efficient and uncongested intermodal service. The bottom line is in the numbers: The Port of Virginia transports more intermodal containers to more cities faster and more efficiently than any other port in the United States. As the largest intermodal facility on the U.S. East Coast, Virginia offers six direct-service trains to 28 major cities each day.  More than 50 motor-carrier companies offer full freight-handling and load-consolidation services. A modern network of interstate and local highways permits fast, direct inland motor-freight transportation to any point in the United States.  The Port of Virginia is the second largest volume port on the U.S. East Coast and one of the most successful shipping ports in the world. The Virginia Port Authority plans to develop Craney Island in Portsmouth, into its fourth state-owned deep-water marine terminal (artist's rendering at right). The terminal would be 600 acres and built in three phases starting in 2013 with completion in 2032.  At build-out Craney Island will have an annual throughput of 2.5 million TEUs.  Over the 20 year construction period, total economic impact is predicted at nearly $1.5 Billion.  Specifically, it will create 1,176 jobs with wages totaling $734,291,200.  The total state and local tax benefit will be $47,647,400. LINK: The Port of Virginia Regional Spotlight Archive: Read More About What's Working in Hampton Roads