PierPass advisory committee continues review of extended gate options

PierPass said it will review the possibility of applying a lower flat fee for both day and night moves, with appointment systems to help regulate traffic, or a port-wide “peel-off” program for containers.    PierPass, the not-for-profit organized by 13 container terminals at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, said it met again with an advisory committee last week to discuss alternatives to the current “OffPeak” program, which helps fund extended hours at those terminals at night and on weekends.
   Currently, a “traffic mitigation fee” is charged to cargo owners whose containers are trucked in and out of terminals during the day on weekdays. That fee acts as incentive for cargo to move at night and on weekends, and the proceeds are used to help fund the added cost of keeping the terminals open at night and on weekends.
   The program has been so successful that nearly half of all containers moving in and out of the ports’ container terminals by truck do so at night, reducing congestion on local railroads and cutting down on pollution from idling trucks.
   PierPass said the three different alternatives to the current system that have been discussed include:
     • Variable pricing, under which the traffic mitigation fee would be higher in times of high gate activity and lower in times of low gate activity;
     • A lower flat fee applying both to day and night moves, with appointment systems to help regulate traffic flow;
     • And a port-wide peel-off, in which trucks would operate like taxis in an airport queue, each picking up the next available container.
   PierPass said, “During the Dec. 8 meeting, the first option – variable and dynamic pricing – received no support from committee members, echoing the cool reception it received at the Oct. 20 workshop. This option has been removed from consideration.”
   An initial draft report will now be prepared by PierPass staff, which the advisory committee will review and discuss in February. The report will then be revised and will be discussed in March and PierPass expects to distribute the final draft of the report and its recommendations on whether to make changes to the current PierPass program in mid-April.