North American ports

Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., has joined a New Jersey state senator in calling for abolition of the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor.

A model for improving truck turn times is emerging at ports on the West Coast of North America, involving a coordinated effort by marine terminals to open their gates at night and on weekends, and to spread out truck traffic through appointment systems with predictive analytics.

The relentless drive by container lines to reduce their per unit carrying costs through deployment of modern mega-ships means that the automation of marine terminals is inevitable. But each automated terminal will be tailored to the individual needs of the operator based on cost, volume and type of operation.

GCT Bayonne expects to pilot the Port of New York and New Jersey’s first truck appointment system in the first half of 2015, a terminal executive said at the 2nd annual JOC Port Performance-North America conference.

Moody's Investor Service today upgraded its outlook for U.S. ports from negative to stable for the first time in five years, on the back of rising U.S. container volumes.

U.S. port congestion delays are starting to cost shippers money — and customers in some cases.

NEWARK, New Jersey — Container dwell times at the Port of New York-New Jersey are down to 4.1 days this year from 6.5 days in 2013, and truck turn times have improved by 11 percent, but the port complex expects even better productivity in 2015.

With ships being the largest source of port-related air pollution at the Port of Long Beach, the port said it on Tuesday that it will implement an incentive to reward shipping lines for testing new air pollution-control technology.

Larger ships and rising volume will force West Coast ports to jump to a new level of technology by investing in automated yard stacking cranes, says Larry Nye, vice president of port engineering and planning firm Moffatt and Nichol.

As a port with one of the largest surpluses of empty containers in the U.S., New York-New Jersey is attractive to agricultural and industrial exporters needing containers but who often have a hard time getting access to them in the non-urban areas where their cargo typically originates.

With its larger, consolidated terminals handling larger volumes from bigger ship calls, the Port of Oakland is considering officially expanding its gate hours for the first time, its head said today.

The continuing congestion and delays affecting West Coast ports are reaching the point where it may leave the type of lasting negative impression that followed the 10-day work stoppage in 2002.

New revenues would be needed by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to fund a proposed cross-harbor barge or rail tunnel connecting New York and New Jersey, Fitch Ratings said on Monday.

For some shippers, the Los Angeles-Long Beach ports provided the ultimate fake-out this year. They diverted cargo away from the largest container complex in the Americas in the spring, and then brought back imports through the ports after months of seeing no disruption— only to get slammed by the worst congestion in years.

Stopping at the congested Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex in October made container ships an average of 3.4 days late at the next port of call, industry analysis has shown.

The congestion that crippled Los Angeles and Long Beach this year and tarnished the reputation of the largest U.S. port complex will linger for awhile longer, but the ports’ chief executives are confident Southern California will once again be the gateway of choice for trade with Asia.

This week’s top 10 stories on JOC.com makes one thing abundantly clear: All eyes are on the U.S. West Coast labor negotiation. The top three stories all centered around negotiations between the Pacific Maritime Association and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union. Several other stories stayed on the familiar topic of West Coast port congestion and the shakeups it has caused in supply chains. Several other business news items also crept into the list.

A $9 million rehabilitation of the Port of Tacoma's main road will replace over 1.4 miles of the port’s main drive this spring, aimed at smoothing the port’s traffic patterns and boosting safety.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the Federal Highway Administration are seeking public comments on their draft environmental impact statement on a cross-harbor barge or tunnel for the movement of trucks, containers or railcars.

The Port of New York and New Jersey handled record container volume in October, and port officials report progress on a broad effort to prepare for larger ships expected to accompany the mid-2016 raising of the Bayonne Bridge.

Strong consumer spending in the U.S. over the past three months has depleted inventories and the replenishment drive to restock shelves for the Spring launches will keep air and ocean carriers busy well into the first quarter.

Bill Wyatt, Port of Portland, Oregon's executive director, plans to retire within five years, according to Portland Business Journal.

A barge port and industrial center are planned on the 800-acre site of a former paper mill at St. Marys, Georgia, just north of the Florida state line.

Citing congestion, the G6 Alliance will omit eastbound calls at the Port of Los Angeles for four straight weeks, starting Jan. 1

American Honda Motor has selected Florida’s port of Jacksonville to export new Acura MDX and TLX models to the Middle East, further solidifying the U.S. Southeast’s status as a growing region for auto production and trade.

The port of Boston continued a streak of year-over-year volume gains in November, handling 16.5 percent more cargo last month.

The ports of Seattle and Tacoma are one step closer to creating an alliance to protect and even expand their container market share after getting a green light — one of two needed — from U.S. maritime regulators.

The Alabama State Port Authority has contracted with a construction firm to build the first phase of intermodal rail facility aimed at making the port of Mobile more attractive to shippers.

The ports of Seattle and Tacoma are scrambling to improve their intermodal access to the hinterland to protect the discretionary cargo they have, and, perhaps, even regain business lost to Southern California and Canadian ports.

The U.S. West Coast port congestion drove shippers to air freight at the worst possible time with rates for air cargo at the seasonal highpoint of what is turning out to be the most robust peak season in years.

For the fourth straight week, JOC.com readers were voracious for LA-LB congestion coverage, but as port woes continue, delays on the West Coast are beginning to trickle down the supply chain. Nine of JOC's top 10 stories for the week concerned port congestion, with the exception one story on the Nicaragua canal.

Seven container ships, two more than the previous day but fewer than earlier in the week, were at anchor on Thursday morning awaiting berths at the congested ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, according to the Marine Exchange of Southern California.

The Port of Seattle Commission on Tuesday approved its 2015 budget that calls for $373.8 million in capital expenditures for the seaport and for Sea-Tac International Airport.

The idle container ship fleet has fallen to its lowest level since the global financial crisis erupted in late 2008 , as port congestion on the U.S. West Coast and in Manila keeps vessels in work.

WASHINGTON D.C. — The U.S. port industry’s celebration earlier this year for pressuring Congress to pass legislation aimed at boosting federal funding on a set schedule for the next decade may be short-lived.

Increasing container dwell times are taking a toll at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, further exacerbating congestion at the busiest U.S. port complex.

The Port of Long Beach in December will open a facility for the storage of empty containers, a move that is expected to help relieve congestion at marine terminals and at the same time free up chassis for use in the harbor.

U.S. shippers dependent on congested ports face a tough year ahead, FTR Associates says. But that doesn't mean 2015 will be easy — or cheap — for anyone shipping freight in the U.S.

West Coast port congestion keeps spot market truck prices on inland routes high, and shippers are rethinking supply chains as cost rise.

Additional details have been released about a plan, reported last week, to create a “gray” chassis pool that will allow free interchange of chassis throughout the Port of New York and New Jersey.