CATOOSA, Okla. — Tulsa Ports, with locations in Catoosa and Inola, is one of the largest inland river ports in the United States. It has nearly 3,000 employees working at companies along the site. The port primarily transports cargo through barges but also uses rail and trucks.
The port can transport bulk commodities, like wheat, soybeans, steel, fertilizer, and other chemicals, and staff say they can move more. Ninety percent of the cargo in and out of Tulsa ports is agricultural commodities.
More than 93 million tons of freight have passed through the port since 1971.
2 News got a ride-a-long on one of the towboats. The towboats can push multiple hopper barges anywhere in the world.
"Our port is cut from the Verdigris (River). It flows down to about the city of Muskogee. That's where it meets up with the Arkansas River. Then from the Arkansas River, it goes all the way across the state of Arkansas until it meets up with the Mississippi River," said Sheila Shook, director of Workforce and Education.
As Shook pointed out, tow boats aren't Fedex. The tow boats only go about five to 10 miles per hour.
Tulsa Ports Executive Director David Yarbrough says one barge can fit 60 semi-truck loads of material.
"The good thing that's different today, then let's say, six years ago, is that companies are interested in doing things that reduce their carbon footprint," Yarbrough said.
There's plenty of activity with a grain elevator on site and 70 companies stationed at the 2,000-acre park.
"Water transportation is the oldest transportation form of the world. It's still the most efficient, and today, still the most economical," he said.
From Catoosa, it's about 445 miles by tow boat to the Mississippi River. Go south, and boats will reach the Gulf of Mexico – with direct access to the world.
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