IN a bid to ease congestion at Long Beach port authorities will open a temporary empty container depot on a vacant pier on Terminal Island with operations planned from December through March.
Long Beach to open vacant pier for empty boxes to ease port congestionIN a bid to ease congestion at Long Beach port authorities will open a temporary empty container depot on a vacant pier on Terminal Island with operations planned from December through March.
The vacant 30-acre site on Pier S is being prepared to store incoming empties amid a spike in cargo volumes as importers prepare for the holiday shopping season.
"Because many terminals are congested due to the current peak in cargo volume and have no room to accept empties, more space is needed," a release from port authorities said.
The temporary depot is expected to help put back into circulation more chassis, the wheeled trailer-frames that trucks use to haul cargo containers.
The port authorities said that the new chassis ownership system at the port complex has at times left terminals and truckers without the equipment they need.
The depot, to be operated by Pasha Stevedoring and Terminals, will provide a location for truckers to deliver empty containers and remove them from a chassis, and then use the chassis to pick up loaded containers and haul them to their destination.
"Clearing up the congestion is our top priority at the port of Long Beach," said chief executive Jon Slangerup. "We are confident that utilising Pier S as an empty chassis yard will expedite this process and create the opportunity to move and allocate chassis to the terminal operators and truckers."
In addition to the depot, the port has identified a plan to operate its own chassis fleet for peak cargo shipping seasons and peak demand.
