Shippers praise FMC for seeking more information on OakPass proposal

Federal Maritime Commission Chairman Mario Cordero said he also favors a third party audit of PierPass.    A group of associations representing U.S. shippers are applauding a decision by the Federal Maritime Commission last week to request additional information from terminal operators in Oakland who have proposed a program called “OakPass” to open terminals on Saturdays, but fund the extended hours with a fee on container shipments moving during regular hours.
   The program is similar to the PierPass program in the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach that is used to fund extended hours in the evening and weekend in those ports.
   In a letter signed by groups such as the Agriculture Transportation Coalition, National Industrial Transportation League and National Retail Federation, the group said, “We laud the Port of Oakland for its ongoing efforts to bring the terminal operators, terminal labor, truckers, freight forwarders, and shippers together to develop a coordinated approach to enhancing terminal operations. We were thus surprised and concerned that the terminal operators proceeded to present to the Commission an OakPass program that had not been shared with these other parties. That the Commission has asserted the need for the terminal operators to collaborate with the cargo interests who will be actually paying the fees, is significant, appropriate and appreciated.”
   Last week the FMC Chairman Mario Cordero told members of the Harbor Trucking Association that he would also like to see a third party audit of PierPass, according to a story published in the Long Beach Press-Telegraph.