North American ports

Joseph Morris takes the helm of the Massachusetts Port Authority as Boston looks to continue a broad modernization of New England’s only full-service container terminal.

The Port of Philadelphia is prioritizing the densification of the Packer Avenue Marine Terminal and looking to open new near-dock storage as it readies for post-Panamax ship calls.

Officials in Savannah and Charleston want carriers to stop changing port calls because unexpectedly discharging containers in the other’s port causes landside woes and disrupts the overall supply chain.

East and Gulf coast ports in the first six months of 2022 continued to benefit from cargo diversions as national retailers sought to mitigate risk with the West Coast labor contract expiring on July 1.

Optimism is growing that a deal can be struck for a new West Coast longshore labor contract within a month or two, but that sentiment is not shared by all observers given the number of difficult issues that need to be resolved.

The developer of a proposed container terminal at Oregon’s Coos Bay is hoping the ongoing supply chain disruption will demonstrate the need for infrastructure that would take billions of dollars and years to build.

US East Coast ports anticipate a busy third quarter and are bracing now to handle the volume with off-dock storage of long-dwelling imports and empty containers to keep cargo flowing smoothly.

With Friday’s expiration of the contract between the ILWU and West Coast marine terminal employers, negotiations for a new deal enter a new and more unpredictable phase that has shippers on edge.

A report commissioned by the International Longshore & Warehouse Union suggests California levy a tax on automated terminals in Los Angeles-Long Beach, with revenues directed to communities that suffer economic harm from the loss of dockworker jobs.

Jacksonville Port Authority’s chief executive sees a chance to reverse a downward trend in the port’s Asia business with the completion of dredging and marine terminal improvements that will allow post-Panamax ships to call.

The South Carolina Ports Authority will extend Sunday hours for truckers through September, one of several initiatives officials believe will help the port navigate the upcoming peak season.

The commander of the US Army Corps of Engineers has endorsed a study about the merits of deepening and widening the Port of New York and New Jersey to allow larger ships to call and reduce wait times.

The US Supreme Court will allow New York and New Jersey to file legal arguments about whether a 70-year-old compact for joint port policing powers also allows either side to exit the deal.

With new incentives, the Port of New Orleans and Louisiana state economic officials are targeting retail distribution centers to ease export-import balance that’s cost the port service and volumes.

The US Department of Agriculture plans to help fund additional chassis for reefer cargo at the Port of Houston and to subsidize dray moves to a Port of Tacoma pop-up yard.

Robust imports from Asia in May produced a new record, defying concerns about high inflation in the US and COVID-19 lockdowns in Shanghai.

A drayage technology provider in the ports of LA and Long Beach that has prioritized dual transactions for its driver network said it is seeing a majority of moves in 2022 involve coordinated empty container drop-offs and laden import pickups.

The Port of Houston is trying to expedite a $1 billion dredging project as an ongoing surge in containerized freight shows the need for more capacity at the Gulf Coast’s busiest port.

US retailers are forecasting near-record imports through the peak shipping season as back-to-school goods that have already begun landing are followed quickly by holiday season merchandise.

The Port of Houston’s two container terminals will be open on Saturdays through at least the rest of 2022 as an import wave continues to tie up capacity at the gateway.

The second service to call on Charleston’s year-old Hugh K. Leatherman Terminal arrived last weekend amid an ongoing labor dispute that has other carriers steering clear.

The Port of Baltimore will receive almost $16 million in additional federal funds that will complete on-dock rail improvements needed as part of the project to raise the Howard Street Tunnel for double-stack service.

A backlog of vessels is building off Savannah, but the Georgia Ports Authority says it’s in a better position to handle the heavy volumes now than it was when delays hit last fall.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is looking for additional land well ahead of dredging that would bring larger ships and double the freight coming into the busiest US East Coast port over the coming two decades.

Drayage operators at California ports are concerned that the final phase of the state’s clean-truck regulations that take effect on Jan. 1 will take a sizable bite out of truck capacity shortage in the harbors.

Drayage technology rollup Envase has added GeoStamp, a GPS-based port and drayage visibility and analytics provider, to its roster of tools for port carriers and intermodal providers.

The Jacksonville Port Authority plans to meet next month with a regional electric utility on how power lines that impose a draft restriction on ships can be raised.

Technology provider Draying.io wants to use its experience in developing a transportation management tool for carriers to help shippers automate the sourcing and pricing of port moves.

The Port of Mobile said a new weekly service to and from Guatemala and Honduras will allow shippers to tap the growing trade between the US and Central America.

COVID-19 lockdowns in Shanghai may not result in a sudden flood of volumes to the US, but the GPA says additional storage capacity at Savannah’s Garden City Terminal and pop-up storage sites will allow it to handle any unexpected spikes.

Amid supply chain gridlock throughout the US, the Port of Houston has signed an agreement to investigate the potential use of an electric rail shuttle system for inland container movement.

New data suggests fears of renewed and widespread port congestion in the US this summer are valid, particularly if growing imports collide with the start of peak shipping season and the return of normal cargo flow from post-lockdown Shanghai.

Port truckers who left to start their own companies in Savannah last fall are re-engaging with former employers as they struggle to find loads to haul amid the recent decline in dray rates.

The new director of the Port of New York and New Jersey said Shanghai’s COVID-19 lockdown is not causing any slowdown at the port because of an increasing number of containers from South Asia and the Indian subcontinent.

Sources interpreted the release of PMA’s port automation study as the group anticipating the potential for debate on the hot-button issue to gain widespread attention in the public domain during upcoming West Coast labor talks.

The head of the Pacific Maritime Association said he is optimistic about a smooth outcome for upcoming contract negotiations with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, though he defended automation as a key tool to grow terminal volumes.

Ocean forwarder UWL has introduced a new bi-weekly service from Vietnam into the US Pacific Northwest as shippers seek out additional vessel capacity to tap a growing source of imports.

Charleston has used several efficiency measures to slash the number of anchored vessels from 27 to five in two months — the lowest count of any major port along the US East Coast.

Approval of APM’s expansion project comes as Mobile continues to see strong growth, with year-to-date volumes through March climbing 10 percent.

Mediterranean Shipping Co. has added Philadelphia to its weekly service from India amid strengthening freight rates to the US East Coast.