Study measures truck turnaround times at Port of LA/LB

The study evaluates three time periods: queue time (spent waiting in line outside the gates), terminal time (from entry gate to exit gate), and visit time (total queue and terminal time).

Key findings of the study include:

• In October, the median queue time was 20 minutes and terminal time 31 minutes, for a total visit time of 51 minutes.

• The majority of visits take less than two hours: 27% are under 30 minutes, 58% under an hour, 75% under one and a half hours, and 86% under two hours.

• 12% of visits take two to four hours, and 1% to 2% of visits take between four and eight hours.

• About 91% of queue times were under an hour.

• The median queue and visit times include trucks that choose to arrive early to wait for the 18:00 OffPeak to start.

• Daytime visits are shortest for trucks that arrive at 15:00. Median visit time for trucks arriving between 15:00 and 16:00 was 45 minutes, while for trucks arriving between 17:00 and 18:00 median visit time was 90 minutes, reflecting the 17:00 meal break.

• When cargo volumes rebounded in the spring and summer of 2010, terminal operators opened additional service hours to reduce congestion. While cargo volumes increased by 6% from May to October, visit time decreased by 13%.

• For the longest 10% of visits, the improvement from May to October was even better, at 15%.

According to Bruce Wargo, co-chair of the Truck Turn-Time Stakeholder Group (TTSG) and president of PierPass, the study shows that most truck visits are being handled in an efficient and timely manner, and that there is plenty of capacity in the ports. However, it also identifies potential areas of improvement.

"The terminal operators are committed to maintaining the efficiency of the system that moves 140,000 containers a week by truck in the country’s largest port complex," said Wargo.

Wargo noted that the queue and visit time measurements include a significant proportion of visits involving two transactions (typically, dropping off an empty container and picking up a loaded container, or vice versa).

Joshua Owen, co-chair of the TTSG and president of Ability/Tri-Modal Transportation Services, said: "This study is part of the community’s effort to come together and discuss solutions that benefit all of us. The results from the study will help us identify periods of congestion as well as where there is room for increased capacity."

He added that it is now the responsibility of the TTSG to continue to identify and resolve potential issues to ensure continued efficiency in the Port of Los Angeles & Long Beach.

Wargo said that trucking companies can reduce wait times by avoiding breaks and shift changes and arriving during under-utilised hours. Furthermore, terminal operators should carefully review their lunch hour and break practices to minimise the waiting times in the yard.