The ‘Biggest Thing That's Happened to the Port of Philadelphia in Decades'

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For the first time, the Port of Philadelphia now has a direct, weekly link to Asia's economy as it launches the Wan Hei Lines' Asia — America 9 Service, reports the Philadelphia Business Journal.

The route has a transit time of 35 days and gives Philadelphia access to ports along Asia's Eastern Coast. It makes stops at Haiphong, Vietnam; Shekou (Shenzhen), Shanghai and Qingdao, China; Kaohsiung, Taiwan; and Balboa, Panama, before coming to the Packer Avenue Marine Terminal in South Philadelphia. It's expected to create 720 jobs (157 of which will be at PhilaPort), over $194 million in economic impact and $7.2 million in state and local taxes per year.

The port welcomed the first call of the ship on Thursday at a news conference with Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf, Port of Philadelphia and Wan Hai Lines officials.

Sean Mahoney, the port's director of marketing, said the new service is "the biggest thing that's happened to the Port of Philadelphia in decades" in terms of expanding capacity, reports PBJ.com.

Check out PBJ.com's full article for how port officials believe the new route will have a hand in decongesting port traffic along the East Coast, giving shippers a more efficient option than going through larger, more congested ports like New York.

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