US Federal Maritime Commissioner Carl Bentzel urged shipping to ‘engage’ with supply chain to solve US port problems.
Namely, Mr. Bentzel wrote the attorneys representing each of the three ocean carrier alliances (2M, OCEAN, and THE) encouraging them to consider participating on the Port of New York & New Jersey’s Council on Port Performance.
It concerns me that not all the alliances have been at the table, participating in real-time problem-solving discussions
The Commissioner added that while meeting with supply chain stakeholders at the Port of New York and New Jersey earlier this month, “it became apparent that the situation at the Port related to the delivery of imports and exports and the return of empty containers is increasingly untenable.” For this reason, he is worried that if left unchecked, drayage trucking serving the Port will suffer, and fewer and fewer truckers will be willing to service the port.
Moreover, he added that in large part, the volume surge of import cargo has contributed to confusion and congestion at the Port of New York & New Jersey, but he expressed his belief that the large-scale structure of the existing three carrier alliance system also contributes to the challenge of providing shoreside transportation.
I strongly encourage that each Alliance participate on the Council on Port Performance (CPP). This is an information sharing group that has been assembled to meet on a regular basis with the purpose of ensuring there is consistent communication among stakeholders
However, when the CPP was created, the Alliances had not been established. Overtime individual members of the Alliances have participated in the CPP, but there has never been full representation of all three Alliances.
This has been a blind spot in the regional supply chain coordination and has become a drag on the efficiency of the supply chain during the pandemic
Over the years, the CPP has been the focal point in addressing regional resiliency and supply chain challenges. Many of the problems, have been resolved by simply being present with other stakeholders, talking issues through.
Freight surges and increased volumes have put tremendous strain on the overall regional supply chain. For the benefit of the post pandemic economy, and to better serve freight volumes, all supply chain stakeholders will need to work together to ensure that the freight moves safely, securely, and efficiently
Mr. Bentzel concluded.
