US truckers mirror problems of local industry

THE NEGATIVE impact of port congestion on hauliers is clearly not the preserve of the local industry. According to the Long Beach Press-Telegram, US truckers have been complaining that it is extremely hard for them to make a living hauling containers to and from the west coast ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles due to the heavy congestion that has been clogging up these facilities over the last six months. The report, quoted by internet news provider SchedNet, said that container truck drivers were being regularly forced to queue for between three and six hours at the terminals for containers, and were not paid for the time that was being wasted in the queue since they are paid by the load and not the hour. This is a familiar complaint in local trucking circles, where Durban congestion has caused similar unhappiness. Members of the California Trucking Association were said to have expressed concern that haulage firms, which lease trucks to port drivers, were being hardest hit by harbour-area delays because they were being made to pay fines to the terminals for collecting and returning boxes late. A bill has been tabled before the US Senate and California state Assembly committees to demand a restructuring of such fees, so that the charges can only be imposed when normal circumstances prevail at the terminals.