Port Development Accelerates
California isn’t alone in tightening environmental regulations. “It’s worth noting the investment the Port of Shanghai is making in carbon emissions,” Hertzman says, adding these investments likely are attempts to get ahead of expected requirements from importers, retailers, and brands. In short, ports are preparing for a changing future. “Port infrastructure projects take years to plan, design, fund, and construct,” Thiessen says. “Planning ahead with ports and marine terminals to ensure modern, cost-effective facilities are available to handle your cargo is important.” Port Authority of New York and New Jersey BUILDING 21 ST CENTURY INFRASTRUCTURE WHILE KEEPING THE REGION MOVING Cargo volume at the Port of New York and New Jersey hit nearly 9.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in 2022, up 5.7% from 2021. That was enough to move the port into second place in national port rankings, behind the Port of Los Angeles. Helping to speed movement of the growing number of goods arriving at the Port of New York and New Jersey is a range of equipment, including six state-of-the-art container terminals that can handle nine 14,000 TEU- capacity vessels at the same time, one billion square feet of warehousing and distribution space within 50 miles of the port, and an ExpressRail intermodal network with an annual lift capacity of 1.5 million containers. At the same time, the seaport continues to add to its capabilities— improving infrastructure and driving toward its climate goals. The pandemic, for all the financial and human misery it wrought, also provided “a real snapshot of the demand to come,” Thrasher says. The seaport’s leadership gained a solid idea of the investments needed to meet expected growth in cargo volume over the next 15 or 20 years, he adds. One example is the $220-million Port Street Corridor Improvement Project, slated for completion in mid-2028. This will
The Port of New York and New Jersey saw cargo volume hit nearly 9.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in 2022, up 5.7% from 2021. That moves the port into second place in national port rankings, behind the Port of Los Angeles.
modernize one of two main highway interchanges into the complex and provide easier access to the New Jersey highway system—a key feature for the approximately 60,000 to 80,000 trucks that serve the port weekly. In addition, a freight rail line that runs through the interchange, providing service to the northern portion of Port Newark, will be elevated in order to mitigate flooding. The work will occur while maintaining adequate service levels for the trucks currently traveling to and from the port. “Much of the complexity and cost of the project comes not from the concrete and the steel, but from managing around operations,” Thrasher adds. MEETING CLIMATE GOALS The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, a signatory to the Paris climate accords, has been aggressive in reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the bistate agency’s own operations, as well as those of its users, Thrasher says. The installation of four direct current (DC) fast chargers at the Truck Welcome Center will help the port drive toward that policy goal, as truck emissions account for about half of the port’s Scope 3 emissions. (Scope 3 emissions are those from the port’s users.) “The chargers are forward-looking
and part of modernizing our legacy infrastructure to today’s standards,” Thrasher says. The project is expected to be completed in 2024. Multiple other projects are in the planning stages. One is the Port Authority’s southbound connector intermodal project, which will enable trains heading into the ExpressRail Elizabeth facility to exit and enter to the south; currently, freight trains can only enter and exit to the north. “This will add fluidity and flexibility to that part of the network,” Thrasher says. The Port Authority also is partnering with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to deepen the federal navigational channels into the port from 50 to 55 feet in most areas, and to 58 feet in one channel, as well as to widen the channels at key points. The project will improve safety and efficiency for vessels currently calling the port and is designed to accommodate vessels with a capacity of up to 18,000 TEUs, allowing them to efficiently navigate to and from the port. Planning is currently underway; the work itself will take about 15 years. As important as these and other projects are to the port’s continued success, close collaboration and coordination among all stakeholders remain just as critical. “It’s what makes the infrastructure work,” Thrasher says.
46 Inbound Logistics • August 2023
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