Backlogged LA port struggles to implement 24/7 schedules: ?We?ve had very few takers?

Joe Biden announced a deal last month to establish around-the-clock operations at the Port of Los Angeles to break an unprecedented container ship traffic jam blamed for driving up consumer prices. But that hasn't happened yet.

Gene Seroka, the Port of Los Angeles executive director, said in an online briefing on Tuesday that the sprawling complex has "24/7 capability", but a shortage of truck drivers and nighttime warehouse workers poses problems in establishing a nonstop schedule, along with getting importers to embrace expanded hours.

"It's an effort to try to get this entire orchestra of supply chain players to get on the same calendar," he said. Among thousands of importers, "we've had very few takers to date."

US ports have been inundated with cargo since the pandemic shifted spending. Covid-19 reduced labor needed to keep goods flowing smoothly. Ageing truckers retired early, while infection control measures limited dock and warehouse staffing. Facing full warehouses at home, companies delayed picking up goods at the port.

With container ships stranded at ports and unloaded goods waiting for trucks, the White House hoped the longer workday at the port would help loosen the bottleneck and reduce shipping delays for everything from cars to toasters to sneakers.

On Tuesday, the backlog remained significant, but there were signs of progress. Eighty-four container ships were waiting to enter the Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex, slightly down from some recent days when the number topped 100.

As for moving cargo, Seroka said the port had witnessed a 25% drop in the number of import containers on the docks since 24 October, from 95,000 to to 71,000. During the same time, cargo sitting nine days or longer dropped by 29%, he said.

To speed up the clearance of containers, the port earlier this month had announced a new fee that would hit imports destined for truck removal after nine days or more on docks, and would start after six days for rail-bound cargo. Ports would charge ocean carriers escalating fees for overstaying container - with a $100 charge for the first day, $200 for the second, and so on.

The progress allowed executives to delay imposing the fee by one week to 22 November, they said.

Seroka acknowledged "there's much more work to be done," but said there had been "great progress by our dock workers, shipping lines, truckers, marine terminal operators and railroad partners".

The US transportation secretary, Pete Buttigieg, said that going to a 24-hour-a-day schedule at the busiest port in the western hemisphere "is, of course, not flipping the switch".

"There are so many players, even just on the grounds of port," he added.