California ports to extend operating hours

The California ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach have announced extended gate hours in an effort to address supply chain issues. The announcement follows a meeting that Port of Long Beach Executive Director Mario Cordero, Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and large companies had with President Biden Oct. 13.  

Earlier in the day, Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, other White House officials, national supply chain leaders, leading retailers and labor and trucking representatives held a virtual roundtable to discuss how they can best work together during the next 90 days, according to a news release issued by the Port of Long Beach.

The Port of Long Beach says it expanded operations at one of its terminals to overnight shifts in September and held a regional supply chain summit attended by White House Ports representative John Porcari, along with representatives from Gov. Gavin Newsom's office to take steps to speed cargo handling.

As part of the coordination facilitated by the Biden administration, the ILWU agreed to work extra shifts, clearing the way for private businesses to adjust their operations to move cargo 24/7 to clear the backlog, according to the news release. Cordero first introduced the idea of 24/7 operations before the pandemic, during the State of the Port in January 2019.

Dozens of container ships have been anchoring near the California ports awaiting unloading at various times this year.

“Before this unprecedented cargo surge began, we believed 24/7 operations were the future,” Cordero says. “After all, consumers can shop online at any time, whether it’s at 4 p.m. or 4 a.m., and 24/7 is already the standard at our partner ports in Asia. The supply chain truly never stops now, and we’re thankful to the Biden administration for using its influence to ensure cargo is always moving.”

“Our ports at the harbors of Long Beach and Los Angeles are responsible for 40 percent of the nation’s cargo,” Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia says. “Their hard work over these last 19 months have kept our economy running throughout this pandemic. But now we must take bolder actions to make sure we keep cargo and our economy moving.”

With 175 shipping lines connecting Long Beach to 217 seaports, the port handles $200 billion in trade annually.

In a separate statement released following the meeting, Port of LA Executive Director Seroka says, "Operational details are being discussed and worked out with the supply chain stakeholders.  The significance of today's announcement is the commitment from industry leaders responsible for moving goods on behalf of American consumers and businesses to open up the capacity needed to deliver.  It's a call to action for others to follow.

“We have heard directly from the president, the vice president, Secretary Buttigieg, National Economic Council Director Deese and Port Envoy Porcari. We have a lot of work ahead. The Port of LA is called America's Port because cargo we handle reaches every corner of the country. In the days ahead, we are committed to continuing to be the convener to ensure the supply chain delivers for the American people."

In September, the ports announced that they would begin testing expanded night and weekend hours, according to a report by Freightwaves, though that announcement and the most recent one do not mention who will bear the cost of these expanded hours.

These ports are just one link in the supply chain, therefore, the overall relief provided by extending their hours is in question, particularly as containers have piled up at ports around the country given the shortage of truck drivers.   

“Given the magnitude of the cargo volumes we’re seeing, every segment of the supply chain needs to maximize their hours of operation,” Freightways quotes Long Beach Deputy Director Noel Hacegaba as saying.

According to Freightwaves, some U.S. port terminals add extra night and weekend shifts during cargo surges to clean out container yards, but few stakeholders have been willing to bear the extra expense of permanent off-peak hours.

Craig Grossgart, senior vice president of ocean at Seko Logistics, Itasca, Illinois, tells Freightwaves that about 35 percent of appointments are going unfilled “because truckers don’t want to pull at night because the distribution centers aren’t open.”