TERMINAL operators at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are working to reduce rail container congestion caused by two months of strong imports, reports New York's Journal of Commerce.
The situation has both the Union Pacific the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railways calling for more rail cars to be sent west to help finish the job.
The rail container inventory at Yusen Terminals in Los Angeles is double the normal volume. 'We've been backed up for four to five weeks, but there's no real congestion yet,' said Yusen CEO Alan McCorkle.
Still, Mr McCorkle said he expects strong volumes for summer and fall as much of the discretionary cargo that left west coast ports last year during the prolonged longshore contract negotiations has returned.
US imports from Asia in January and February handled in Los Angeles-Long Beach totalled 1,395,837 TEU, an increase of 39.6 per cent from the first two months of 2023, according to PIERS data.
The two railways that serve Los Angeles-Long Beach, BNSF and Union Pacific, say they are responding to the backlog in Southern California. BNSF and Union Pacific said they are deploying more intermodal railcars to Los Angeles-Long Beach and are adjusting their operations so the terminals can clear out the rail containers and reduce dwell times.
BNSF in February set a record for on-dock intermodal container moves in Los Angeles-Long Beach, beating its previous February volume record set in 2021, said BNSF vice president Jon Gabriel.
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The situation has both the Union Pacific the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railways calling for more rail cars to be sent west to help finish the job.
The rail container inventory at Yusen Terminals in Los Angeles is double the normal volume. 'We've been backed up for four to five weeks, but there's no real congestion yet,' said Yusen CEO Alan McCorkle.
Still, Mr McCorkle said he expects strong volumes for summer and fall as much of the discretionary cargo that left west coast ports last year during the prolonged longshore contract negotiations has returned.
US imports from Asia in January and February handled in Los Angeles-Long Beach totalled 1,395,837 TEU, an increase of 39.6 per cent from the first two months of 2023, according to PIERS data.
The two railways that serve Los Angeles-Long Beach, BNSF and Union Pacific, say they are responding to the backlog in Southern California. BNSF and Union Pacific said they are deploying more intermodal railcars to Los Angeles-Long Beach and are adjusting their operations so the terminals can clear out the rail containers and reduce dwell times.
BNSF in February set a record for on-dock intermodal container moves in Los Angeles-Long Beach, beating its previous February volume record set in 2021, said BNSF vice president Jon Gabriel.
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