ELECTED leaders for the ports of Seattle and Tacoma came to the conclusion that had become obvious as global shipping competition became more vigorous: better to work together for the region than to compete with each other.

Last week, the two port commissions announced they were forming a landmark partnership to operate a joint marine cargo operation. The much-needed move will end decades of infighting and customer stealing between the two ports and will position the region as a more formidable player in the global shipping industry. The Tacoma and Seattle ports will be better able to compete with ports up down the West Coast from Canada to Mexico all trying to grow their market share.

Establishing the new alliance took months of closed meetings and negotiations. Knocking down the walls of a longtime rivalry to join forces proved challenging. The ports should be commended for making it happen. The alliance is about marine cargo; the port districts’ other operations will remain separate. A full-on merger would have taken years of more negotiations and approvals.

Now that the ports agree to work together, officials need to link elbows not only to maintain their customer base, instead of fighting over it, but also capture new business in the tough, growing industry of global logistics.

Though the shipping industry does not ignite as much buzz or carry as high a profile as Microsoft or Boeing, it is a major underpinning of Seattle’s economy, providing jobs with living wages.

Read more