Maritime news dominated the trade press in 2016. The expanded Panama Canal opened in June with high expectations. The SOLAS alarm was raised, then Hanjin filed bankruptcy, and additional carrier consolidations and alliances followed. Away from the spotlight, hundreds of intermodal terminals processed millions of containers at ports and inland facilities without major disruptions.
In the coming year, projections of intermodal growth will require increased productivity and efficiencies at these facilities, aided by a renewed federal and state commitment to expanded freight infrastructure.
The work has started. Long Beach and Los Angeles MTOs have begun a process to address questions around off-peak programs and truck appointment systems, designed to increase capacity at the country’s largest port complex. On the East Coast, interoperability among chassis pools is still a goal at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and neighbors to the south, GPA and SCPA, are augmenting their intermodal presence through new inland ports.
Technology will continue to improve velocity and efficiency across the supply chain. The Middle Harbor Project in Long Beach promises to be one of the most advanced and greenest container terminals in the world. 2016 saw the introduction of Class I RR mobile apps, enabling driver productivity and turn time data, and container tracking technologies are improving cargo visibility as loads are moved from facilities to shippers.
IANA has contributed to both terminal velocity and load transparency through its Gate Control System and Street Interchange Program, and will continue to add to the growing suite of industry technology solutions.
The federal government is also putting its money where its mouth is. Access to intermodal facilities, intermodal connectors, in particular, have received attention through the FASTLANE and highway reauthorization programs, along with TIGER grants. We welcome a new administration that has committed to expanded funding for infrastructure, hoping that intermodal will receive an even bigger share in 2017.