Only about 20% of all truck visits to Los Angeles and Long Beach marine terminals involve dual transactions, which is exacerbating congestion at the Southern California gateway. That’s spurring the Port of Long Beach to partner with its terminal operators on an initiative to ensure that at least half of all trucker visits to the port’s six container terminals involve dual transactions as the port looks to reduce congestion amid record container volumes.
Weston LaBar, CEO of the Harbor Trucking Association, said increasing the number of dual transactions — pairing the delivery of an export load or empty container return with receipt of an inbound load — should result in an immediate and significant reduction in port congestion. LB’s initiative to prioritize and maximize dual transactions is part of a broader five-part program to provide immediate relief to congestion problems that are projected to continue at least until volumes in the eastbound trans-Pacific experience a temporary lull during the Lunar New Year holiday in Asia that will begin on Feb. 12.
The other initiatives include adding gate hours and expanding operational shifts at the terminals, maximizing the aggregation of containers for large importers into peel-off piles, offering special gates or exemptions for high-volume customers, and optimizing operational use of terminal space and equipment through the creation of near-dock container/chassis yards.