The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey announced that cargo volumes in these ports set a new record for the first half of 2018, with volumes up by 6.8% over the same period in 2017, when the previous six-month record was established.
Between January and June this year, the port handled 3,450,469 TEUs, compared to 3,229,675 TEUs handled during the same period in 2017. The increase was caused by a 7.8% increase in loaded import containers, carrying commodities such as furniture, appliances and beverages. Export loaded containers also increased by 9.2%.
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A main factor leading the cargo to increase is last June’s completion of the $1.6 billion Bayonne Bridge Navigational Clearance Project, which raised the clearance capacity under the bridge from 151 feet to 215 feet, allowing ships as large as 18,000 TEUs to pass underneath it. Previously, the maximum vessel size was 9,800 TEUs.
Today, 9.1% of the port’s cargo is carried on vessels that are 13,000 TEUs or larger. Before the bridge raising, ships of this size were limited to terminals located outside the Newark and Elizabeth channels. Other factors driving the cargo volume up are a strong and growing regional economy and growth in intermodal cargo.
Port Authority Executive Director Rick Cotton, commented:
The capabilities of the Port of New York and New Jersey have never been more vividly on display. These record-breaking numbers demonstrate the port’s strategic appeal to cargo shippers and distributors. Now, we must continue to move forward with all of our port stakeholders to meet the challenges that lie ahead to handle even greater volumes of cargo.
The Port Authority expects cargo transported by rail to continue increasing after its newest rail facility – ExpressRail Port Jersey – opens at the end of 2018. When that facility opens, it will give the port the capacity to handle 1.5 million container lifts a year and eliminate 2,250,000 annual truck trips from local highways.
In addition, the port also reported a 6.2% increase in vehicles handled by auto processors serving the port, from 264,766 units handled in 2017 to 281,224 units handled in 2018. The increase partly due to the Auto Incentive Program launched in 2014 to provide financial incentives to auto manufacturers who bring new or increased business to the port.