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Further Reading

596th Transportation Group

The mission of the 596th Transportation Group is to synchronize Defense Transportation System surface cargo movements and provide Traffic Management and Single Port management for the Department of Defense in peace and crisis. Plan, coordinate and accomplish the expeditious and economical movement and documentation of DOD sponsored cargo through terminals and facilities in Texas and the U.S. Gulf Coast states of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and western Florida. Deploy/Redeploy U.S. Forces as assigned by Commander, MTMC DSC. Advise and assist wartraced Reserve Units as assigned by Commander, MTMC DSC. Participate in JCS exercises. Be prepared to deploy military personnel and Emergency-Essential Civilians OCONUS.

On 1 October 1997, the 1302nd Major Port Command was renamed as the 596th U.S. Army Transportation Terminal Group. This was in accord with a plan to rename all water terminals in MTMC.

The military transportation units of the Military Traffic Management Command have become more uniform in size and composition. The changes in existing MTMC units are sweeping in scope. The ideas for the changes came from MTMC's commanders themselves. At the same time, the changes reflect reduction in layering and the great use of computer automation. The proposal called for changes in the size and structure of most of the Military Traffic Management Command's 25 transportation unit locations in the United States and around the world. Implementation of the proposal was complete by 30 September 2001. MTMC battalions were reorganized into standard 26-member organizations. The battalion's subordinate company and detachment units were also affected. The MTMC Battalion Evaluation Group selected 26 as an optimum number for a water port concentrating on the core missions of terminal operations and traffic management. The 596th Transportation Group, Beaumont, Texas, converted to a standard battalion. The organization dropped in size from 42-to-26. Reductions included two soldiers and 15 civilians. The new unit commander is a lieutenant colonel in lieu of a colonel. One officer was added to the organizational structure.