Members of the U.S Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) Office of Multimodal Freight held a call with stakeholders across the United States supply chain on issues and disruptions stemming from the ongoing situation in the Red Sea.
According to USDOT, industry participants acknowledged encountering isolated challenges and anticipated increased congestion at certain U.S. container ports, such as the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, over the next four to six weeks as cargo is rerouted to avoid the Red Sea.
Despite these challenges, both industry representatives and federal government officials highlighted the application of lessons learned from managing supply chain bottlenecks during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The proactive efforts of the Department of Transportation in bringing stakeholders together to prepare for potential congestion were appreciated by participants, USDOT said in its statement.
To remind, the U.S. Department of Defence has launched Operation Prosperity Guardian, bringing together multiple countries to jointly address security challenges in the southern Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. Meanwhile the U.S., along with allies, has been launching multiple strikes against the Houthis to stall their efforts.