I would say that in a manner of speaking the sea port towns or towns by a river might not have the edge these days but they sure have an extra place of employment - The harbor. If nothing else then the harbor allows more employment opportunities.

Also if the location is strategic, then we'll see that they will take a lot of tax from the passing/docking freighters/ships. It is interesting to note that most of the capital cities of the world still have a major river passing through them or they are on the coast. Although they don't have the advantage they had in the past.