Port users oppose ban on private cars

A regulation that requires port users to park their cars and use shuttle buses to access the quays at the Port of Durban has now extended its wings, and its worries, to Richards Bay. It has been a loud complaint in Durban all of this year. And, said Carl Webb, MD of Project Logistics Management, the freight industry and the SA Association of Freight Forwarders (Saaff) has informed Transnet Port Terminals (TPT) that the system may well be suitable for personnel who do not have to access the harbour on a regular basis. “But it is totally impractical and counterproductive for regular port users and customers of TPT.” In a meeting with TPT, the complainants asked about the basis of the investigation into the risk factors – which was TPT’s stated reason for implementing the bus service. Said Webb: “It transpired that their entire basis for the implementation of the system, which adversely affects all port users, was an incident involving one of their staff members. “They had no record of incidents involving private sector vehicles or incidents involving personnel on foot. There has since been another incident involving one of their staff members. An empty bus ran into a terminal wall at the port and ended up burning out, with the only fatality being the driver.” But now the shuttle bus idea has moved on to Richards Bay, and is proving to be even a bigger problem there with the massive spread of quays at this huge port. According to Dave Gardner, RB branch manager of Macs Shipping, the system was implemented on December 5, but port users have already called on TPT to discuss their concerns. He had already discussed the issue with Christina Reddy, Reggie Mthembu (assistant terminal executive) and Tracy Neat of TPT – and had requested that a detailed investigation be done into the viability of this proposed implementation. But Mthembu informed him that a directive had come from Brian Molefe, group CEO of Transnet, that the shuttle bus system had to be implemented. “In turn, I requested that TPT Richards Bay management should inform Molefe that this system was not workable in Richards Bay, due to the size of the terminal and the diversity of business,” Gardner told FTW. “Also that TPT should provide safe and adequate parking areas adjacent to each berth, and thereby eliminate private vehicles on the quayside, and thus correctly deal with the concern of private vehicles driving on the quayside.” And, Gardner said, on behalf of the port users, this new shuttle bus service will directly and negatively impact on the cost of moving cargo through Richards Bay. His calculations estimate that a conservative impact of two hours per ship per day in the port is lost by the denial of free public access to cargo and vessels (and he has detailed calculations on the time delays using the bus to back up this statement). Calculated over the year that equates to 28hrs x 365days = 10 220hrs lost per year to ships’ time alongside. “This will directly delay the ship accordingly.”