Bringing order to the gate

FMC Chairman Mario Codero has challenged terminal operators in Los Angeles and Long Beach to justify the “Traffic Mitigation Fee” charged for peak hour gate moves

The spiralling congestion at Los Angeles/Long Beach (see page 1) has left terminal operators, the ports themselves and truckers at odds over what to do to ease the problem. The Long Beach Harbor Commission has voted to approach the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) to seek permission to cooperate with LA on a solution, on the basis that it needs an approved Discussion Agreement to address all the complex harbour transport systems in a unified way.

Online logistics solutions specialist eModal has come up with a new model for port drayage that has the potential to address many of the truck congestion issues US ports are currently facing.

Konecranes has made a breakthrough in the area of waste handling in the USA with New York Container Terminal (NYCT) ordering two RTGs and two RMGs to handle containers of municipal solid waste from New York City. The equipment will be delivered to NYCT’s terminal on Staten Island by the end of 2014.

PierPass has launched an initiative to reduce the number of “trouble tickets” generated during truck visits to terminals at Los Angeles and Long Beach. Trouble tickets are produced at truck gates when there is a problem with the transaction and are otherwise known as “exceptions.”

The US Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) in a 2-1 decision has agreed to seek a court-ordered injunction of the concession truck agreement portion of the Clean Truck Programs (CTP) that has been progressed by the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.