MIAMI-When an underground tunnel connecting PortMiami and Interstate 395 is completed in 2014, flatbed trucks hauling cargo containers will be able to travel from Miami to Massachusetts without passing through a single traffic light, notes John Carver, head of Jones Lang LaSalle's Ports, Airports and Global Infrastructure group, which recently relocated from Los Angeles to Miami. Nearby, he explains, a restored rail link connecting the Port with the Florida East Coast Railway will enable the transfer of up to 200 containers at a time, a far cry from the one-by-one loading process underway today.

“The tunnel and rail projects are part of a multi-phase, $6.4 billion overhaul at PortMiami that will also see a 50-foot deep dredge capable of accommodating so-called post-Panamax ships—vessels currently too large to traverse the Panama Canal,” Carver tells GlobeSt.com. “Officials estimate the upgrades will increase PortMiami's capacity from 1 million TEUs today to 2 million TEUs in 2020—and 3 million TEUs in 2035.”

Of course, Miami is not the only Florida port receiving a facelift. From the Port of Tampa and Port Citrus, to Port Canaveral and Port Everglades, nearly all of the state's 14 seaports are experiencing upgrades. Carver points out that investments come as Tier 1 ports in Miami and Jacksonville prepare for an uptick in volume once the Panama Canal expansion is complete and secondary ports in smaller markets look to capture additional market share in non-container volume and short haul shipping.