Unannounced port closure angers CT port users

An unannounced two-hour
closure of the container
terminal at the Port of Cape
Town on Thursday morning
last week caused serious
problems for the container
truckers in the city.
And, although the truckers
were given warning by SMS,
this was followed by another
one-hour closure in the
afternoon.
The Cape Town Harbour
Carriers’ Association
(CTHCA) slammed the
terminal management, telling
them that the short-notice
warning didn’t give enough
time for the truckers to
make the necessary schedule
adjustments for the afternoon,
and that the morning closure
had cost a number of truckers
business, according to
association chairman, John
Berry.
“No trucks could enter
the port between 06:00 and
08:00, and the queue of
waiting trucks was well over
the bridge,” he told FTW.
“This is extremely disruptive
to business where special
arrangements – like delivery
slots or special equipment –
may have been made.
“What is of particular
concern to us is that the
association met with the port
just the day before for its
regular monthly meeting –
and not a word was said about
the morning’s closure. Had we
been alerted we could have
at least warned our members.
The port has the ability to
alert transporters through an
SMS system, but this was also
not done.
“With the peak season
rapidly approaching, we
hope the port will improve
its communication with this
association and not find it
necessary to conduct internal
communication in port users’
time.”
But the damage to the
truckers had already been
done.
“The port effectively took
three hours out of the working
day and the impact of this
was huge,” Berry added. “Our
members lost loads because
of this – and their clients
did not understand that the
circumstances were beyond
their control.”
Peter Newton, director of
Seaboard and another of the
Cape Town shippers’ voices,
joined in the fray.
“On a number of occasions
we have asked such meetings
(union feedbacks and the
like) be held in Cape Town
Container Terminals’ (CTCT)
time, and not that of port
users,” he told FTW. “And the
response has been silence.
“An entirely unsatisfactory
state of affairs.”
Attempts by the CCHCA
to discuss this matter with
Transnet Port Terminals (TPT)
executive, Louis du Toit, bore
little fruit – apart from an
apology.
“Du Toit claimed he
knew nothing about it, and
passed the buck to Richard
van Schalkwyk who sent
an e-mail to the CCHCA in
which he apologised for the
communications lapse and
undertook to give 48-hour
advance warning of future
stoppages.
As a result of this error, the
terminal agreed to extend the
free time of all containers that
were not collected as a result
of the terminal gate closure.
He also agreed to conduct all
employee meetings during offpeak
times.