Conrad wants DOT to address box shortage

Conrad wants DOT to address box shortage

Conrad

   Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., said a lack of shipping containers is harming the ability of exporters in North Dakota to ship goods abroad.
   In a letter to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, Conrad said exporters in North Dakota and other rural areas in the Midwest are being disproportionately impacted by the lack of service.
   “This situation is simply unacceptable. If our exporters are to remain competitive, they must be able to rely on the transportation network to get their products to markets, and that network must not unduly penalize those who are in rural areas,” Conrad said.

LaHood

   Producers in North Dakota and other rural areas have been unable to access containers needed to ship their products overseas, he said, and when containers are available, prices per container are often 50 percent higher than those at other inland locations.
   “Producers tell me they have lost business when customers can't get timely delivery of products or they have been priced out of the market,' he said.
   Conrad asked Lahood “to address the serious transportation impediments that exist to international trade that is hurting our rural exporters.”
   Conrad is also a cosponsor of a bill, the Freight Rail Infrastructure Capacity Expansion Act of 2010, with John Ensign, R-Nev., to provide tax incentives to railroads to encourage investment in freight rail to expand capacity. The bill has been endorsed by the Association of American Railroads.