NORTH AMERICA

So far so good with US war on congestion

21 years ago

Having learned last years hard lessons, Americas ports are successfully avoiding gridlock after investing in both equipment and personnel. More contingency time has been built into schedules, and while ships are still arriving full, they are not having to wait around for a berth. This is in sharp contrast to the cargo chaos seen last year, with the flood of Chinese imports throwing sailing schedules into confusion and making delays routine.

Longshore workers join fellow labour activists to show support for truckers

The 360,000TEU facility will be built at Dames Point where projected traffic could eventually climbed to 800,000TEUs. The hope is that the new terminal will act as a major gateway for trade between the Southern US and Asia and also between the US and fast-growing Latin American markets.

Previously imposed constraints may be brought back in the near future if volumes continue to grow at current levels, but the hard work put in so far this year should stave that off. In Los Angeles and Long Beach cargo is still coming in at record levels – the actual number of containerships hosted is down by 200 over last year, but the ships themselves are bigger.

Meanwhile the controversial PierPass OffPeak scheme diverted over 188,000 truck trips from weekday traffic in its first four weeks of operation, and officials are claiming to have won over the more stubborn drivers whose full cooperation is vital to the scheme’s success.