LOS ANGLES: Cargo delivery and drop-off delays at the twin ports in Los Angeles and Long Beach appear to have been overcome, with speeds now back to the pace they were about two years ago, PierPass announced.
During the second quarter of this year, the turnaround time of trucks retrieving and delivering cargo averaged 40.8 minutes during peak hours and 43 minutes during off-peak hours, according to PierPass, an organization that works on traffic congestion, air quality and other issues around the port area.
Truck times were even faster during May and June, when peak hour times fell below 40 minutes for the first time since the second quarter in 2014.
That’s an improvement on the sluggish pace seen in 2014’s fourth quarter, when it took an average 55.3 minutes during peak, and 58.4 minutes during off-peak hours, for trucks to get containers in or out of the port complex.
The increasing number of larger ships docking at the ports have presented logistical challenges in recent years, prompting both harbor and shipping company officials to change their operating methods. Strategies have included automation, better coordination on chassis distribution and the creation of an appointment system.
“Through investment, innovation and collaboration with other port stakeholders, the terminals have repeatedly demonstrated their ability to overcome operational challenges,” PierPass President John Cushing said.
Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka said Harbor Department officials are “encouraged by the recent turn time results and appreciate the work that has been done to attain these gains.” He added he is looking “forward to partnering with stakeholders to obtain further reductions and additional supply chain efficiencies.”
PierPass charges fees to terminal operators and operates off-peak shifts on week nights and Saturdays as part of a program created in 2005 to reduce congestion on the roads surrounding the port.
