Port gridlock on both sides of the U.S. — and its impact on trucking — sparked push back from trucking groups seeking to fight unreasonable traffic and wait times and fees deemed unfair.
Here are the two key news items:
700-truck line cause for concern in New Jersey
Following reports of a 700-truck line waiting to pick up loads at the Port of New York and New Jersey, the intermodal wing of the New Jersey Motor Truck Association last week published an open letter deflecting any blame placed on trucking and called for the port to change its hours to accommodate the recent surge in freight volume.
“To blame the trucking community for the lines at the terminals is beyond the absurd. The volume that any other port in the world would do cartwheels to have and not service it, properly borders on sacrilege — no, it is sacrilege,” NJMTA writes in its letter.
The port should add an 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. shift, NJMTA recommends, to help avoid delays caused by daytime traffic peaks.
“Most cargo, as much as 90 percent, is drop-and-pick and surely can be accommodated with these access times,” the association writes. “We cannot stand still. This must be solved logically, not with truckmen and women being punished for trying to do their job, and make this what the Port of New York and New Jersey can and should be.”
