A task force has released its report making nearly two-dozen recommendations that it said will improve truck congestions and air quality at the Port of New York and New Jersey.

The Port Performance Task Force also said its suggestions will improve customer service for truckers and other port stakeholders, and enhance the flow of goods from the port to the marketplace.

A new group of port stakeholders, the Council on Port Performance, will be formed to immediately begin the task of implementing the recommendations.

Nearly 100 port partners representing all sectors of the industry, including the New York Shipping Association, International Longshoremen’s Association, National Retail Federation, ocean carriers, importers and exporters, terminal operators, chassis providers and trucking companies, developed the recommendations over the past six months following extensive analysis, discussion and collaboration, according to the port authority.

The Task Force was created by the port authority in conjunction with the New York Shipping Association in December 2013 to identify challenges and examine broad long-term recommendations to improve service reliability and efficiency in the port. The task force also explored ways to address more immediate issues.

The recommendations include:

  • Development of a model to improve the management of truck chassis in the port.
  • Development of a truck management system to meter truck arrival rates, which would reduce congestion and resulting air emissions, decrease truck turn times and improve terminal productivity.
  • The coordination of gate hours at all of the privately operated terminals serving the port.
  • The use of radio-frequency identification, or RFID, technology to measure and report on various truck movement times, including turn times on the terminal, queue times at terminal entrance gates and traffic on port roadways.
  • Improved customer service at the terminals to assist truckers with transactions and other questions.

According to the port authority, the recommendations are geared toward ensuring the Port of New York and New Jersey remains the leading destination for international shippers on the East Coast. It said it has invested or authorized approximately $4 billion in port infrastructure in the last 10 years, including $1.3 billion to raise the roadway of the Bayonne Bridge, which support 296,000 jobs and $12 billion in economic activity that the port generates.

To review the Task Force report, visit the The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey website.

 

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