USDOT opens multimodal freight office

As part of the inaugural meeting of the White House Council on Supply Chain Resilience, President Joe Biden and U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg yesterday announced the launch of the Office of Multimodal Freight Infrastructure and Policy to oversee the maintenance and improvement of the nation’s freight network and supply chains.

In partnership with the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics, the new office will support the Freight Logistics Optimization Works (FLOW) program.

Leading the Multimodal Freight Office will be Allison Dane Camden, the U.S. Department of Transportation's deputy assistant secretary for multimodal freight infrastructure and policy. Previously, Camden served as deputy assistant secretary of multimodal development and delivery for the Washington State Department of Transportation.

In addition to growing the FLOW partnership, the office will oversee the development of the national multimodal freight network, review state freight plans, and provide technical assistance to state and local governments, among other duties, according to a news release.

FLOW now includes the five largest U.S. container ports, seven of the largest ocean carriers and four of the five largest retailers by imports.