Oakland developing ways to get cargo in and out of port more quickly

Port says volumes are increasing and vessels are reaching Oakland off-schedule and in bunches after delays at congested Southern California ports.    As its cargo volumes increase, the Port of Oakland is developing proposals to accelerate the flow of containerized cargo through its five marine terminals so cargo is delivered more quickly and there is less waiting for harbor truckers who haul it.
   The port said Wednesday that after two months of decline, container volumes were up in March. The port handled 157,286 TEUs of loaded containers for the month, 6.4 percent more than in March 2014. That’s a sizable turnaround from a 31 percent year-over-year decrease in January and February. Including empties, container volumes were 209,407 TEUs in March, 8.1 percent more than in the March 2014.
   “We’re moving in the right direction again,” said Port Maritime Director John Driscoll. “But we’ve still got plenty of work to do to make up for a slow start to the year.”
   In order to expedite containers, the port is developing plans on four fronts that include:

• Saturday operations every week to alleviate weekday crowding inside terminals;
• Locations outside terminals where cargo could be dropped off or picked up after hours;
• Electronic monitoring to measure wait-times at terminal gates;
• A “gray” chassis fleet which permits harbor truckers to use any chassis at any terminal to haul cargo over the road.

   All four plans could be implemented, or at least pilot-tested, within two months, according to a statement from the port. If successful, they could address a major desire of importer importers and exporters: faster cargo movement.
   “Our customers don’t want to wait for their cargo when it comes off the ship,” said Port of Oakland Executive Director Chris Lytle. “We hear them and we understand their urgency, so we’re acting on it.”
   The Port of Oakland said a cargo glut in recent weeks has slowed deliveries to some importers. That’s the result of vessels reaching Oakland off-schedule and in bunches after delays at congested Southern California ports. Harbor truckers report that in some instances they’ve waited two hours or more to pick up containers.
   The port’s cargo acceleration program is intended to address slowdowns and long waits. Regular Saturday gates would spread cargo pickup and delivery over an extra day each week, relieving stress on terminal operations. Offsite locations would enable truckers to transact business without entering terminals.
   Monitoring would provide drivers with up-to-the-minute wait times so they could avoid peak periods of activity, while the gray chassis pool should minimize periodic shortages of chassis that delay cargo delivery.
   Earlier this month the port said the backlog of ships awaiting berths had disappeared and that vessel schedules are normalizing after two months of disruptions caused by a waterfront labor dispute between the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and employers represented by the Pacific Maritime Association.