Marine chassis pools are getting tighter after a jump in international intermodal volume from West Coast ports in February, but stakeholders are hopeful of avoiding a repeat of 2021 when BNSF and Union Pacific terminals were overwhelmed with cargo.

All 10 of the busiest US cargo ports registered declines in container volumes in early 2020, with only modest improvement forecasted for the second half of the year due to a muted peak season.

Seaports on the US West Coast aim to regain some of the market share they have lost over the past five years to the East and Gulf coasts by building infrastructure and implementing technology needed to move cargo cheaper and faster.

The British Columbia ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert are increasing their market share of US cargo because Canadian railroads are pricing intermodal more aggressively to the US Midwest than are US western railroads.

Seattle plans to lease the vacant Terminal 5 to SSA Marine/PIL Group, launching the NWSA harbor redevelopment program to consolidate older, smaller terminals into fewer but larger, more modern facilities that will enhance cargo-handling efficiency on today's mega-ships.

As the initial experience indicates, North American port extended gates adoption, despite increasing container volume and truck congestion, is coming in fits and starts.

By improving connectivity in the harbor through more on-dock rail, smoother hand-offs from the vessel to rail, and more timely and accurate data flow, West Coast ports will offer shippers a more attractive package for shipping discretionary cargo through their gateways to the eastern half of the United States, Los Angeles and Long Beach port executives agree.

The key to the top-tier ports’ dominant share of Asian imports is that ocean carriers have chosen the four gateways as the first call inbound on their services from Asia. And that ensures that retailers and other large importers receive what they value most.

The two candidates standing for election appear to have identified the correct formula concerning two leadership factors.

After a substantial gain in 2017, retailers are forecasting another increase in US container import volume in 2018, as container lines and beneficial cargo owners prepare for annual trans-Pacific rate and service contract negotiations.

In an up-and-down market for breakbulk shipments, Pacific Northwest ports have seen strong volumes in several categories.

US exporters using West Coast ports are paying extra to work around shorter delivery windows.

Seattle-Tacoma resurrecting successful extended-gate program for peak season.

The subject of a contract extension was first raised in March 2015 at the JOC’s annual TPM Conference.

A US Federal Maritime Commission public notice on Tuesday sparked erroneous reports that Maersk was still unable to access its customer contract database due to the Not Petya virus that spread through computers worldwide on June 27.

Maersk Line says it is close to bringing its operations back to normal after a massive cyberattack.

The Seattle-Tacoma alliance will purchase an additional four cranes to enable its ports to better handle mega-ships.