Pierpass News

The members of the West Coast MTO Agreement (WCMTOA)—the 12 marine terminal operators at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach—have agreed to add common business rules for the appointment systems that will become part of the OffPeak program later this year. Subject to regulatory approval, the revised OffPeak program, which is administered by PierPass, is expected to begin in August. The terminals agreed to add the common business rules—operational procedures that all terminals will follow—in response to requests from trucking companies and other stakeholders. The new common business rules include an appointment window—the time span between the earliest and latest times a truck can arrive for an appointment, including grace periods—of two hours for all appointments.

Hapag-Lloyd informs about the congestion at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach that has reached a critical point. I. Several container ships are anchoring off the harbor and waiting in line to berth. Now Vessels are also being delayed due to ongoing congestion. II. There continues to be an acute shortage of truck power. The American Trucking Associations (ATA) estimates that the industry has a shortage of approximately 30,000 drivers nationwide. Hapag-Lloyd continues to explore opportunities to contract additional vendor companies. III. The success of the import delivery appointment system at some terminals has been limited in part by a lack of sufficient container handling equipment to pre-mount those containers prior to the scheduled pick-up appointment.

As a result of the Port of Long Beach’s congestion relief efforts, two truck chassis owners, DCLI and TRAC, are adding over 3,000 chassis to their local fleet over the next few weeks to match supply and demand. "We need to increase the utilization of the more than 100,000 chassis in the San Pedro Bay port complex,” said Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners Vice President Rich Dines. “Mega container ships with 10,000-plus total moves per call have added pressure on our chassis pools and far too many chassis sit idle on a daily basis. Dines is chairing a key Board subcommittee charged with improving Port efficiency. In addition to chassis-related issues…

New president John Cushing’s role gives him responsibility for PierPass programs to relieve congestion and improve air quality at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. He takes over the role of president from Bruce Wargo, who has led PierPass since its founding in 2004 and remains CEO. “John’s leadership in services for terminal operators, trucking companies and cargo owners, along with his experience developing and managing a new international container terminal, put PierPass and the OffPeak Program in able hands,” Mr. Wargo said. Mr. Wargo has taken on the additional role of PierPass board chairman. Under the OffPeak program, the 13 international container terminals at the two adjacent ports operate additional shifts on nights and Saturdays.

Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) Chairman Mario Cordero will hold a forum titled, "U.S. Port Congestion: Examining Causes, Impact on Stakeholders, and Exploring Possible Solutions" on Monday, September 15, 2014, from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Port of Los Angeles’ administration building in San Pedro, Calif. According to FMC, the forum’s goal is to promote dialogue on the causes and implications of congestion at U.S. ports. Industry stakeholders, regulators, and the general public are encouraged to take part.

U.S. Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) Chairman Mario Cordero will hold a forum titled, "U.S. Port Congestion: Examining Causes, Impact on Stakeholders and Exploring Possible Solutions" Monday, September 15, 2014, 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Port of Los Angeles. According to the FMC, the forum’s goal is to promote dialogue on the causes and implications of congestion at U.S. ports. Topics covered will include factors causing port congestion, truck turn times, impact on stakeholders, use of technology to reduce congestion and related fees and PierPass.

PierPass Inc. has  announced an initiative to reduce the number of transaction problems experienced when trucks pick up or deliver containers at the marine terminals at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. These problems – exceptions from normal processes that result in the issuance of "trouble tickets" -- lead to substantial delays in container movement through the terminals. About 5% of all transactions at terminals in the United States result in trouble tickets, which on average add about an hour to the "turn time," the amount of time a truck spends at a terminal, according to a 2011 report by the National Cooperative Freight Research Program (NCFRP). The report found that "exceptions from normal processes [are] a major source of delay and cost.

The West Coast MTO Agreement (WCMTOA) today announced a 2.5 percent increase in the Traffic Mitigation Fee (TMF) at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, in order to address labor cost increases scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2012. Beginning August 1, the TMF will be increased by $1.50 per TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit) to $61.50 per twenty-foot container or $123 per forty-foot container. The current TMF rates are $60.00 and $120.00 respectively. On August 1, 2011, the TMF increased for the first time since 2006. The $10 per TEU increase came after hourly labor costs increased more than 31 percent for the same period. At that time, WCMTOA announced that beginning in mid-2012 it would begin adjusting the TMF annually to address labor cost increases.

The nation’s major retail container ports are operating smoothly this month despite railroad congestion that is causing some delays in hauling cargo away from western ports, according to the November Port Tracker report released today by the National Retail Federation and Global Insight. All West Coast ports covered by the report – Los Angeles/Long Beach, Oakland, Tacoma and Seattle – were given a “medium” congestion rating this month to reflect railroad delays. Medium indicates a warning of potential for congestion rather than existing congestion. The ports themselves were operating smoothly, but railroad congestion was causing delays of up to four days for inbound and outbound rail traffic.