Marquette Facts at a Glance

Marquette Transportation is one of the nation’s largest marine transportation services companies, operating three fleets of line haul towboats and tugboats that transport dry, liquid and specialized cargos.
- River unit
  50 line haul vessels ranging from 4000 to 9000 horsepower; more than 800+ dry cargo barges. Operates the Upper and Lower Mississippi, Illinois and Ohio rivers.
- Gulf-Inland unit
  50+ inland towing vessels ranging from 1250 to 3300 horsepower. Operates the entire U.S. inland waterway system with special emphasis on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway from Brownsville, Texas, to St. Marks, Florida.
- Offshore unit
  11 offshore tugs ranging from 2400 to 5000 class horsepower. Operates the Gulf of Mexico, the Eastern Seaboard, Caribbean, Mexico, Central and South America, and points beyond.
Marquette distinguishes itself from other line haul operators by leasing instead of operating its 800+ dry cargo barges. When compared with other marine transporters, this presents our customers with a significant competitive advantage.
Marquette is CDC-compliant and a member of the following industry organizations:
- American Waterways Operators (AWO) and its subgroups, including the AWO Inter-Regional Safety Committee
- River Industry Action Committee (RIAC)
- Lower Mississippi River Committee (LOMRC)
- Illinois River Carriers Association (IRCA)
- Ohio River Ice Committee (ORIC)
- United States Coast Guard (USCG) License Renewal Process Quality Action Team
- Greater New Orleans Barge and Fleeting Association (GNOBFA)
Marquette’s vessels are equipped with the industry’s most advanced navigation, communications, and safety equipment.
On average, Marquette transports more than 40 million bushels of grain each month.
The size of a Marquette vessel crew varies depending on the area of operations and the vessel. A crew operating a vessel in our River unit is generally comprised of nine to 10 personnel, including a captain or pilot, engineers, deckhands, cooks and mates. On average, a crew operating a vessel in our Gulf-Inland or Offshore unit is comprised of four to five members. In most cases, becoming a captain or pilot takes approximately five years.
If placed end-to-end, Marquette’s marine equipment would stretch over 30 miles.
According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, marine transportation is a more cost-efficient, environmentally superior means of transportation when compared with semi truck or rail car. It is also considered, by far, the safest mode of transportation in relation to loss of human life or injuries.
A single Marquette barge can transport more cargo than 58 semi trucks or 15 jumbo hopper railroad cars.
Barge transportation of bulk commodities is considered to be the most fuel-efficient method of moving raw materials and semi-finished products needed by the nation’s economy.