Canadian ports on both coasts are working toward a return to normal operations amid the nearly three-week-long spate of rail blockades, with full rail service restored to the ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert, and some service back at the Port of Montreal.

With Canadian National Railway’s Eastern Canadian network virtually shut down due to First Nation blockades protesting a planned pipeline, shipping and other business groups are urging Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to bring an end to the conflict.

The Port of Montreal is looking for a new CEO and president after Sylvie Vachon announced she will retire after 30 years, the last 11 years leading the port, as cargo volumes -- especially Asian cargo -- grew.

The Port of Montreal on Tuesday began posting artificial-intelligence driven predictions for next-day truck turn times to help truckers and BCOs make decisions on when to drop-off or pick-up a containers.

With a new connection to the deepwater port in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canadian Pacific Railway is ramping up the competition with rival Canadian National for inland intermodal cargo from the east coast of Canada.

A hearing into whether a strike or lockout would be so disruptive to the Port of Montreal that it should be prohibited will continue after the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) rejected a claim by employers that a board member had shown a pro-union bias.

The investment adds momentum to the port’s efforts to improve truck fluidity following high single-digit growth last year that has since moderated to mid- single-digit gains.

The Port of Montreal believes that by the end of the summer truckers will be able to plan their pick up or drop off of cargo at the port with the help of a turn-time prediction created by using artificial intelligence techniques.

The port of Montreal’s primary container terminals are developing programs that will cut turn times by allowing truckers to process container documentation before they arrive at the port in an effort to cope with rising cargo volumes.

The expansion of one of four main terminals at the port of Montreal will help Canada’s second-largest port cope with growing cargo volumes as shipping services increase.

VIDEO: With an electronic logging device (ELD) rule set to take effect this year, the Canadian container shipping industry is working to mitigate anticipated trucking pressures as the mandate will tighten capacity. JOC Executive Editor Mark Szakonyi spoke with Groupe Robert Vice President Martin Roy, and OEC Group President and CEO Marc Bibeau on how beneficial cargo owners can work with their transportation providers to mitigate. Those tactics are one of the various subjects that will be addressed at JOC’s Canada Trade Conference on June 3-5 in Toronto. https://events.joc.com/canada-trade-2019

A slew of upgrades, efficiency improvements, and new services are all aimed at boosting business.

Montreal’s extended gate hours have improved fluidity since their introduction in September. Now, amid rising volume and construction, among other factors, port officials would like to see the off-hours cargo pickup continue to trend higher to further decease congestion.

Maersk Line will stop at the port of Montreal only, and no longer the port of Halifax, on its route linking Canada to Europe, to speed up transit times.

In the midst of a volume uptrend, Montreal is the latest North American port to try extending its terminal gate hours to improve cargo fluidity in and out of the terminal, and to place a charge on containers to pay for it.

At a June 6 meeting in which 30 port stakeholders reviewed the impact of increasing the hours from beyond the old time of 6 a.m. to 2.30 p.m., to close instead at 7 p.m., the terminals agreed to extend the project, which began May 14 and was due to end on June 22, at least through the summer.

Shippers that view Montreal as a quick and direct way to move cargo in and out of Canada, and perhaps connect to the United States, can rest easier regarding their assessment; a pilot program that extended gates by 4.5 hours appears to have diminished congestion inside the port.