Freight Mobility: Seattle, Metro Vancouver

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At a Maritime and Manufacturing Summit held May 19, Seattle Mayor Ed Murray announced the creation of a new heavy haul network of truck routes that will enable permitted vehicles carrying overweight loads to travel on designated routes, and the Port of Seattle and Eagle Marine Services (EMS), also recently announced a proposal to relocate its cargo and break bulk activities to another terminal so that the port can modernize Terminal 5 to handle the bigger ships that are changing international shipping. Port Metro Vancouver recently announced that it will move forward in implementing recommendations made by advisor Vince Ready in addressing an important aspect of the Joint Action Plan – compensation to container truck drivers for wait times they encounter at terminals. 

Seattle: Port, City Announce Heavy Haul Corridor and Modernization of Terminal 5

At a Maritime and Manufacturing Summit held May 19, Seattle Mayor Ed Murray announced the creation of a new heavy haul network of truck routes that will enable permitted vehicles carrying overweight loads to travel on designated routes. In cooperation with the Port of Seattle, roads along this corridor will be rebuilt to new heavy haul standards. View the proposed heavy haul corridor map here.

In addition to opening remarks by the mayor, the Maritime and Manufacturing Summit included a moderated panel discussion on four priority areas identified by industry: infrastructure/freight mobility, land use/regulatory environment, skilled workforce, and communication/telling the story. Moderated by Port of Seattle Commission Co-President Stephanie Bowman; panelists included Marni Heffron, Heffron Transportation, Inc.; Mike Moore, Pacific Merchant Shipping Association; Jill Wakefield, Seattle Colleges; and Tad Harmon, 206 Inc.

The Port of Seattle and Eagle Marine Services (EMS), also recently announced a proposal to relocate its cargo and break bulk activities to another terminal so that the port can modernize Terminal 5 to handle the bigger ships that are changing international shipping.

"If we're going to keep jobs in Washington state, we need investments that make us globally competitive," said Port of Seattle Commissioner Bill Bryant. "That’s why we're rebuilding T5. We're investing in jobs. Modernizing T5 so it can handle the new big ships is the first step in realigning our port for the future."

Under the proposal, EMS would shift its operations to Terminal 18, allowing EMS to preserve container volume and ship calls. This commitment will preserve maritime jobs that depend on cargo flowing today through T5. Cargo destined to T5, under this proposal, would begin transitioning to T18 in mid-June. The proposal with EMS is tentative pending approval by the Port of Seattle Commission.

Metro Vancouver: Port Metro Vancouver Moving Forward on Truck Driver Action Plan

Port Metro Vancouver recently announced that it will move forward in implementing recommendations made by advisor Vince Ready in addressing an important aspect of the Joint Action Plan – compensation to container truck drivers for wait times they encounter at terminals. The Joint Action Plan was announced on March 26 as a solution to end the 28-day work disruption that had halted operations at the port earlier this year.

"Despite significant challenges to measuring wait times and ensuring independent terminal operators have the information they need to be able to pay drivers accordingly, Port Metro Vancouver is confident we can have a system in place very soon," said Robin Silvester, president and chief executive officer at Port Metro Vancouver.

Port Metro Vancouver also expects to install GPS units in about 1,000 port-licensed container trucks before July at which time all of the approximately 2,000 trucks serving the port will be GPS-enabled. This will complete a critical step to being able to reliably track truck movements throughout the port and measure wait times. Port Metro Vancouver will also then be the only North American port to have GPS installed on all port-licensed trucks.

There is still much to be done to implement the Joint Action Plan, but the implementation of the recommendations on driver wait times is another important step forward.