U.S. Federal Maritime Chairman Mario Cordero said he’s prepared to try to shut down the PierPass program at the Southern California ports via a federal injunction if an agency review of the program finds it to be in violation of the Shipping Act and terminal operators don’t move fast enough to address his concerns.
Cordero is ramping up pressure on PierPass to respond to shippers’ criticism that the program — which incentivizes shippers to move cargo through terminal gates at night and on weekends in an effort to reduce congestion in surrounding Los Angeles and Long Beach neighborhoods — is raising traffic mitigation fees but not the level of service. The decision to seek an injunction against PierPass would have to be approved by at least three of the five FMC commissioners.
“Congestion will happen again” like that seen on the U.S. West Coast from mid-2014 to early 2015 if the industry doesn’t change, Cordero said.
Cordero’s pressure on PierPass is part of his larger effort to encourage U.S. ports to operate 24/7 models in order to handle the surges of cargo caused by the increasingly larger vessels calling terminals on all coasts. Shipper frustration with PierPass has triggered rejections of a proposal for a similar program at the Port of Oakland.
