Tag Archives: PierPass

PierPass Offers Opinion on 24/7 Gate Operations at Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach

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Dear Users of OffPeak Gates,

Over the past few months, some port interests have been promoting the idea of mandating that terminals in the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach operate truck gates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. On behalf of the terminal operators, I recently summarized our point of view on this position in a letter to a Member of the U.S. Congress. Because this issue has significant implications for port users, I am sharing our point of view with the broader cargo movement community.

While the idea may seem appealing when considered in a vacuum, it can’t survive a basic cost/benefit analysis. Such a mandate would undermine the competitiveness of the San Pedro Bay ports, as it would raise costs for shippers and drive away cargo.

When the terminals nearly doubled the number of gate hours per week under the PierPass OffPeak program in 2005, container volume was expected to grow rapidly to fill the new second shift. However, by 2013 volume was only slightly higher than it was in 2005 (14.6 million TEUs in 2013 vs. 14.2 million TEUs in 2005).

As a result, marine terminal operators have never recovered the full costs of the night gate operations. The incremental costs of the current OffPeak night gates are approaching $180 million annually, with TMF collections falling short by $64.9 million in 2013.

The West Coast Marine Terminal Operators Agreement members recently contracted an accounting firm to calculate the cost of operating seven days a week, at either two shifts or three shifts per day. The firm took into account an expected decrease in the cost of existing shifts as a portion of cargo volume flows into the new shifts.

The accounting firm provided the following estimate:

  • Working two shifts per day, seven days per week would add $121.5 million to current annual operating costs, a 22% increase
  • Working three work shifts per day, seven days per week would add $167 million to current annual costs, a 30% increase

When the gridlock of 2004 threatened cargo owners’ ability to move their goods and strongly undermined community support, cargo owners were willing to accept a fee to open up new capacity. At this time, we believe cargo owners would be extremely reluctant to pay additional fees for adding capacity that is unneeded. Neither the trucking companies nor the terminal operators are in any financial position to pay the costs. Nor would we expect the money to come from taxpayers. (The OffPeak program receives no port, city, state or federal funding.)

Mandated 24/7 operations at the terminals would be financially crippling and would offer little practical benefit to the trucking industry. The second half of the existing night shift, from 11:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m., is significantly underused by trucking companies. The hour beginning at midnight receives only 66% of the traffic received during the busy hour beginning at 6:00 p.m., while the hour starting 1:00 a.m. receives only half (53%) of the 6:00 p.m. traffic. Traffic during the start of the day shift is similarly light.

When the terminal operators added the OffPeak second shifts in 2005, they and other stakeholders expected harbor trucking companies to begin running two shifts per day. While many have done so, a large proportion of trucking companies and drivers are instead operating a single shift, spanning the afternoon of the peak daytime shift and the first half of the night shift. If they’re not even taking advantage of having two shifts, there is little or no reason to believe that they would make much use of a third shift.

Unlike in 2005, there is no capacity crisis that needs to be addressed through a hugely expensive increase in hours of operation.

Nor will 24/7 operations will do anything to fix the largest cause of daily truck gate congestion: trucking companies sending trucks to park outside the terminals waiting for the OffPeak shift to start. These trucking company practices directly influence the length of turn times. Truckers can reduce their turn times by moving containers during the 8 to 10 hours per day when lines are short, and by taking simple steps to avoid trouble tickets.

Sincerely,

Bruce Wargo
President and CEO, PierPass Inc.

PierPass Diverts 30 Millionth Truck Trip From Los Angeles, Long Beach Peak Traffic

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LONG BEACH, Calif., Aug. 28, 2014 – PierPass Inc. today announced that its OffPeak program has reached a major milestone, diverting its 30 millionth truck trip from weekday, daytime traffic in Los Angeles and Long Beach since the program began in July 2005. OffPeak has greatly eased congestion on city streets and nearby freeways, and reduced emissions from trucks idling outside of terminals and in traffic.

On an average OffPeak weeknight, 17,000 trucks visit the marine container terminals at the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach. If all of these trucks were lined up bumper-to-bumper, they would form a line 170 miles long, half the distance from Los Angeles to San Jose. Without the OffPeak program, this cargo would be crammed into a single day shift, more than doubling daytime volumes and causing major congestion.

Under the OffPeak program, the 13 international container terminals at the two adjacent ports operate additional shifts on nights and Saturdays. Over the past nine years, PierPass OffPeak gates have grown to handle about 55 percent of daily truck-borne container traffic at the port complex.

The OffPeak program has nearly doubled the capacity of the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Substantial unused capacity remains available at the ports within the current hours of operation. A large proportion of the trucks serving the ports work only a single shift, spanning the second half of the day shift and the first half of the night shift. Lines are typically short or non-existent during mornings and after 11:00 p.m.

“The terminals here have been delivering cargo reliably and without major disruptions since the 2004 congestion crisis that led to the creation of PierPass,” said PierPass President and CEO Bruce Wargo. “Terminal operators continue to innovate to keep cargo moving quickly as industry conditions change.”

The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach have seen none of the major disruptions experienced by other large North American and European ports over the past year. While all import and export containers at the two ports are being delivered, the terminals have been managing through pressures caused by disruptions in several industry segments involved in cargo movement: huge new ships have begun calling at the ports, each carrying 50 percent or more containers than ships carried just a few years ago; chassis have often been in short supply since shipping lines began transferring chassis ownership to leasing companies; and the railroads that move about half of all containers in and out of the terminals have been late providing locomotives and railcars to the terminals as they struggle with nationwide capacity shortages.

The average in-terminal turn time – the amount of time it takes a truck to drop off or pick up a single container – in the first half of 2014 was 42 minutes, up 7.7% from the first half of 2013. Adding the average 20 minutes in queue outside the terminals, the typical single transaction takes about one hour.

“While port congestion has increased worldwide, the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are handling these pressures better than most of the other major ports in North America and Europe,” Mr. Wargo said. “One reason LA / Long Beach works is because the PierPass OffPeak program nearly doubled the capacity of the ports in 2005, with no taxpayer funding.”

About PierPass

PierPass is a not-for-profit company created by marine terminal operators at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach in 2005 to address multi-terminal issues such as congestion, air quality and security. To learn what it takes for a truck to drop off or pick up a container at a marine terminal, see http://youtu.be/P9IJN1yIIJ4. For additional information, please see www.pierpass.org.

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PierPass August News and Updates

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PierPass Monthly Transaction Data

Each month we provide a summary of the latest transaction data from marine terminal operators (MTOs) at the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach. Below please find data from the month of July 2014.

Average in-terminal turn time:

48.7 minutes day shift
49.2 minutes night shift

For comparison, the average in-terminal turn time in June 2014 was 44.2 minutes for the day shift and 46.2 minutes for the night shift.

In-terminal turn time is the average amount of time a truck is inside a terminal to complete a transaction. Truck activity information is derived from RFID data, and excludes lunch hour, breaks and trouble tickets. Turn time at individual terminals will vary depending on time of day and other factors.

For more information about truck turn times and how we measure them, please see our Q&A at http://goo.gl/PiOjBp.

Frequent callers* average moves per day:
11% trucks 5 or moves per day
18% trucks 4 moves per day
30% trucks 3 moves per day
25% trucks 2 moves per day
16% trucks 1 move per day

*The ports define frequent callers as trucks making one or more moves per weekday. Average moves per day by frequent callers tells us how many moves a truck can make if it is working every day. In July, 29 percent of frequent callers made four or more moves per day.

Day vs. Night Gates:
Average daily number of day gate moves: 15,732
Average daily number of night gate moves: 17,608
Number of day shifts open: 25
Number of night shifts open: 17

The number of unique trucks calling on the ports in July was 10,274.

Note:
All terminals were closed for the July 4th Holiday, the second shift one night for an ILWU Stop Work meeting, and several terminals closed July 28th for Harry Bridges Birthday Holiday.

PierPass July News and Updates

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PierPass Monthly Transaction Data
Each month we provide a summary of the latest transaction data from marine terminal operators (MTOs) at the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach. Below please find data from the month of June 2014.

***For more information about truck turn times and how we measure them,
please see our new Q&A at http://goo.gl/PiOjBp***

Average in-terminal turn time:
44.2 minutes day shift
46.2 minutes night shift

For comparison, the average in-terminal turn time in May 2014 was 41.7 minutes for the day shift and 43.7 minutes for the night shift.

In-terminal turn time is the average amount of time a truck is inside a terminal to complete a transaction. Truck activity information is derived from RFID data, and excludes lunch hour, breaks and trouble tickets. Turn time at individual terminals will vary depending on time of day and other factors.

Frequent callers* average moves per day:
11% trucks 5 or moves per day
18% trucks 4 moves per day
30% trucks 3 moves per day
25% trucks 2 moves per day
16% trucks 1 move per day

*The ports define frequent callers as trucks making one or more moves per weekday. Average moves per day by frequent callers tells us how many moves a truck can make if it is working every day. In June, 29 percent of frequent callers made four or more moves per day.

Day vs. Night Gates:
Average daily number of day gate moves: 16,061
Average daily number of night gate moves: 16,253
Number of day shifts open: 24
Number of night shifts open: 17

The number of unique trucks calling on the ports in June was 11,186.

Note:
All terminals were closed for the second shift one night in June for an ILWU Stop Work meeting.

Customer Service Advisory: Periodic Chassis Shortages

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Dear Users of Peak and OffPeak Gates,

PierPass has been notified by several terminal operators of chassis shortages.
We strongly encourage your drivers to please bring in an export, empty or bare chassis when picking up an import. Please have your drivers ensure that chassis are in good order to prevent delays and/or issues with out-gating.

For additional information please contact the respective chassis pool provider.

PierPass Inc.

PierPass June News and Updates

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PierPass Monthly Transaction Data
Each month we provide a summary of the latest transaction data from marine terminal operators (MTOs) at the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach. Below please find data from the month of May 2014.

***For more information about truck turn times and how we measure them,
please see our new Q&A at http://goo.gl/PiOjBp***

Average in-terminal turn time:
41.7 minutes day shift
43.7 minutes night shift

For comparison, the average in-terminal turn time in April 2014 was 38.7 minutes for the day shift and 42.0 minutes for the night shift.

In-terminal turn time is the average amount of time a truck is inside a terminal to complete a transaction. Truck activity information is derived from RFID data, and excludes lunch hour, breaks and trouble tickets. Turn time at individual terminals will vary depending on time of day and other factors.

Frequent callers* average moves per day:
12% trucks 5 or moves per day
18% trucks 4 moves per day
29% trucks 3 moves per day
25% trucks 2 moves per day
16% trucks 1 move per day

*The ports define frequent callers as trucks making one or more moves per weekday. Average moves per day by frequent callers tells us how many moves a truck can make if it is working every day. In May, 30 percent of frequent callers made four or more moves per day.

Day vs. Night Gates:
Average daily number of day gate moves: 14,407
Average daily number of night gate moves: 17,707
Number of day shifts open: 27
Number of night shifts open: 15

The number of unique trucks calling on the ports in May was 10,215.

Note:
All terminals were closed for Memorial Day and for the second shift one night in May for an ILWU Stop Work meeting.

PierPass May News and Updates

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PierPass Monthly Transaction Data  
Each month we provide a summary of the latest transaction data from marine terminal operators (MTOs) at the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach. Below please find data from the month of April 2014.

 ***For more information about truck turn times and how we measure them, please see our new Q&A at Questions and Answers on Turn Times***

 Average in-terminal turn time:
• 38.7 minutes day shift
• 42.0 minutes night shift

For comparison, the average in-terminal turn time in March 2014 was 37.3 minutes for the day shift and 40.4 minutes for the night shift.

In-terminal turn time is the average amount of time a truck is inside a terminal to complete a transaction. Truck activity information is derived from RFID data, and excludes lunch hour, breaks and trouble tickets. Turn time at individual terminals will vary depending on time of day and other factors.

Frequent callers* average moves per day:
• 11% trucks 5 or moves per day
• 19% trucks 4 moves per day
• 28% trucks 3 moves per day
• 24% trucks 2 moves per day
• 18% trucks 1 move per day

*The ports define frequent callers as trucks making one or more moves per weekday. Average moves per day by frequent callers tells us how many moves a truck can make if it is working every day. In April, 30 percent of frequent callers made four or more moves per day.

Day vs. Night Gates:
• Average daily number of day gate moves: 14,589
• Average daily number of night gate moves: 16,900
• Number of day shifts open: 26
• Number of night shifts open: 17

The number of unique trucks calling on the ports in April was 11,005.

Notes:
• All terminals were closed for the second shift one night in April for an ILWU Stop Work meeting.
• Several terminals were closed for the Cesar Chavez holiday.

PierPass April News and Updates

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PierPass Monthly Transaction Data  
Each month we provide a summary of the latest transaction data from marine terminal operators (MTOs) at the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach. Below please find data from the month of March 2014.

 ***For more information about truck turn times and how we measure them, please see our new Q&A at Questions and Answers on Turn Times***

 Average in-terminal turn time:
• 37.3 minutes day shift
• 40.4 minutes night shift

For comparison, the average in-terminal turn time in February 2014 was 40.6 minutes for the day shift and 43.7 minutes for the night shift.

In-terminal turn time is the average amount of time a truck is inside a terminal to complete a transaction. Truck activity information is derived from RFID data, and excludes lunch hour, breaks and trouble tickets. Turn time at individual terminals will vary depending on time of day and other factors.

Frequent callers* average moves per day:

  • 6% trucks 5 or moves per day
  • 14% trucks 4 moves per day
  • 28% trucks 3 moves per day
  • 31% trucks 2 moves per day
  • 21% trucks 1 move per day

*The ports define frequent callers as trucks making one or more moves per weekday. Average moves per day by frequent callers tells us how many moves a truck can make if it is working every day. In March, 20 percent of frequent callers made four or more moves per day.

Day vs. Night Gates:

  • Average daily number of day gate moves: 12,387
  • Average daily number of night gate moves: 14,833
  • Number of day shifts open: 26
  • Number of night shifts open: 16

The number of unique trucks calling on the ports in March was 10,994.

Notes:

  • All terminals were closed for the second shift on March 6 for an ILWU Stop Work meeting.
  • Several terminals were closed for the Cesar Chavez holiday.

PierPass March News and Updates

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PierPass Monthly Transaction Data  
Each month we provide a summary of the latest transaction data from marine terminal operators (MTOs) at the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach. Below please find data from the month of February 2014.

 ***For more information about truck turn times and how we measure them, please see our new Q&A at Questions and Answers on Turn Times***

 Average in-terminal turn time:
• 40.6 minutes day shift
• 43.7 minutes night shift

For comparison, the average in-terminal turn time in January 2014 was 40.5 minutes for the day shift and 44.0 minutes for the night shift.

In-terminal turn time is the average amount of time a truck is inside a terminal to complete a transaction. Truck activity information is derived from RFID data, and excludes lunch hour, breaks and trouble tickets. Turn time at individual terminals will vary depending on time of day and other factors.

Frequent callers* average moves per day:

  • 7% trucks 5 or moves per day
  • 17% trucks 4 moves per day
  • 31% trucks 3 moves per day
  • 27% trucks 2 moves per day
  • 18% trucks 1 move per day

*The ports define frequent callers as trucks making one or more moves per weekday. Average moves per day by frequent callers tells us how many moves a truck can make if it is working every day. In February, 24 percent of frequent callers made four or more moves per day.

Day vs. Night Gates:

  • Average daily number of day gate moves: 14,700
  • Average daily number of night gate moves: 14,764
  • Number of day shifts open: 23
  • Number of night shifts open: 16

The number of unique trucks calling on the ports in February was 11,061.

Notes:

  • All terminals were closed for the second shift on Feb. 6 for an ILWU Stop Work meeting.
  • Several terminals were closed for the Lincoln’s Birthday and Washington’s Birthday holidays.

PierPass February News and Updates

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PierPass Monthly Transaction Data  
Each month we provide a summary of the latest transaction data from marine terminal operators (MTOs) at the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach. Below please find data from the month of January 2014.

*** For more information about truck turn times and how we measure them, please see our new Q&A at http://goo.gl/PiOjBp ***

Average in-terminal turn time for January:
• 40.5 minutes day shift
• 44.0 minutes night shift

For comparison, the average in-terminal turn time in December 2013 was 39.2 minutes for the day shift and 42.7 minutes for the night shift. Individual truck turn times increased across the harbor in the month of January due to increased cargo containers, ship calls and periodic chassis shortages. 

In-terminal turn time is the average amount of time a truck is inside a terminal to complete a transaction. Truck activity information is derived from RFID data, and excludes lunch hour, breaks and trouble tickets. Turn time at individual terminals will vary depending on time of day and other factors.

Frequent callers* average moves per day:

  • 11% trucks 5 or moves per day
  • 18% trucks 4 moves per day
  • 30% trucks 3 moves per day
  • 25% trucks 2 moves per day
  • 16% trucks 1 move per day

*The ports define frequent callers as trucks making one or more moves per weekday. Average moves per day by frequent callers tells us how many moves a truck can make if it is working every day. In January, 29% of frequent callers made four or more moves per day.

Day vs. Night Gates:

  • Average daily number of day gate moves: 15,810
  • Average daily number of night gate moves: 17,541
  • Number of day shifts open: 26
  • Number of night shifts open: 16

The number of unique trucks calling on the ports in January was 11,100.

Notes:

  • All terminals were closed on New Year’s Day.
  • All terminals were closed for the second shift on Jan. 9 for an ILWU Stop Work meeting.
  • Some terminals were closed for the MLK holiday.