b'30American Journal ofTransportation ajot.com(QUESTIONScontinued fromon Interstate 695, which is part of the Bal- Port of Baltimores closure could causeto 13 hours of driving in a 14-hour period. page 26) timore Beltway. anothersnaginthesupplychainandHowever, it does not entirely suspend the transportation industry by launchingWhateverinsurancelitigationandincrease shipping rates, that appears notthe HOS rules, as has been the case in a dedicated service solution between Bal- other related processes play out, we areto be the case.other emergencies. The extension extends timore and New York, in response to thenotgoingtowaitforthemtoplayoutThe ocean freight rate benchmarkingto commodities rerouted from the port of devastating March 26 incident in which ato make sure these dollars are getting toand intelligence platform Xeneta found inBaltimore. cargo ship collided with the Francis Scottwhere they need to be, Buttigieg said.a recent survey that spot rates on the EastThe definition of commodities is left Key Bridge leading to its collapse, theAnd where they need to be is helping theAsia to East Coast of the U.S. routes havebroad. It includes the most critical prod-train company said.people of Maryland rebuild right now. dipped by 1% since the collapse. Most ofuctsregularlyimportedintoBaltimore, DominicCovello,executiveVPOn April 12th the Maryland Congres- the ships destined for Baltimore are insteadincludingautomobilesandotherRo/Ro ofTerminalTransportationServices,asionalDelegation,introducedtheBalti- going to other East Coast ports, and what- commoditiessuchasfarmequipment. Baltimore-basedtruckinganddrayagemore BRIDGE Relief Act in both the USever cargo needs to ultimately end up inThe National Transportation Safety Board company whose operations are centrallyHouse and Senate to build back the Fran- Baltimore can be moved by rail or truck. (NTSB) investigation into the cause of the locatedtotheBaltimoresterminals,cis Scott Key Bridge. Oceanfreightcontainershippingaccident could take as long as 18 months. explained to the AJOT the two-part com- Accordingtoareleaseissuedbyrates may not have increased followingCrews were at the scene hours after the plexity of rerouting containerized freight.MarylandCongressmanKwesiMfume,the bridge collapse, but this incident is yetbridge collapsed. Ourimportersreallydidnthaveanythe legislation would authorize the federalanother problem for shippers to handle onNTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy gave decisions in where that cargo went if it wasgovernment to fully fund the replacementtop of all the other disruptions impactingMembers of the Senate Commerce, Sci-past that point [already enroute aboard theof the Francis Scott Key Bridge and itssupply chains at the moment, includingenceandTransportationCommitteean containership]. So, the first phase of thisapproaches in Baltimore City, BaltimoretheongoingdiversionsintheRedSeaupdate on the status of the investigation wasfindingoutwhereitsgoingtogoCounty, and Anne Arundel County. Thereregion and drought in the Panama Canal,on April 10, when the committee held a [containership operators new port desti- is also a liability section in the BaltimoreXeneta Chief Analyst Peter Sand said. hearing on her renomination to the board. nation] . And most of that cargo endedBRIDGE Relief Act that restates a pre- As part of its effort to keep the supplyHomendy said she expects a prelimi-up in two places. The ports in New Jersey,existing regulation requiring the federalchainfluid,theFederalMotorCarriernary report on the incident to be issued New York,theterminalsthere,andthegovernmenttobereimbursedifastateSafetyAdministration(FMCA)issuedduring the first week of May, and for now, terminals in Norfolk, Virginia. So, we asreceivesanycompensationfrominsur- anHours-of-Service(HOS)waiverforinvestigatorsarefocusingontheships a trucking company anticipated that. Andance claims or any other source related totrucking impacted by the bridge collapseelectrical system as a possible cause. while our customers and importers werethe bridge collapse. that will run until May 8 and could beOfcourse,thatspreliminary, waiting for answers from steamship lines,extended, depending on the need.Homendysaid.Itcouldtakedifferent within 24 hours, we opened up services tos uPPlyc hAinr esilience Two additional hours were added to aroads, different paths as we continue this Norfolk, to Richmond, which has a bargeWhile there were concerns that thedrivers daily driving limit, moving from 11investigation. Its very early.from Norfolk, to Philadelphia terminals, tothe Wilmington,Delawareterminals. Basically, the surrounding network fromR A T IBaltimore,Covellosaid. Adding,WeE B Ndid not open up service to New York andE L GNew Jersey just because its operationallyCmuch more difficult and expensive to start up. So, we had that foresight and immedi-ately were able to go to our customers and offer solutions1920-2020ConverselywithcontainersthatO EwouldnormallybeleavingthePortofF SERVICBaltimore, Terminal Transportation Ser-vices foresaw the freight bottleneck, and openedupservicesviatherailroad SUCCESS STARTS WITH A WINNING TEAM!wesawtheopportunityforpeopleto get cargo moved via rail where trucking capacitywasabsorbed.Becauseeven ourselves, if our drivers have to drive fiveSince our establishment in 1920, we haveWE OFFER OUR CUSTOMERS:hours instead of five miles, our capacitybeen providing our global customers aOn-site Storage and Multi-modalis going to shrink just like anybody elsepremier level of service through superiorDistribution Serviceswith the specialized hauling abilities of ahandling and performance, technological drayage company. So, we went ahead andadvancements, and a perpetual eye Customer Access to 24 hour Inventory Trackingalready opened up. Within those first 24on customer satisfaction. Also, we offer oneStandard Berths and Ro-Ro Ramps are availablehours, we opened up services to the Nor- of the most cost effective and reliable laborSpecially engineered Lifting Gearfolk Southern ramps out in Port Royal,forces in the North Atlantic. Virginia,andHarrisburg,Pennsylvania.Container Transloading from / to Rail or TruckKnowingthatthosewouldprobablybeWe have the ability to accommodate aOn-site service provided by 2 Class Ioutlets when we got outside of the railvariety of automobile, breakbulk, bulk,Rail CarriersrampshereinBaltimorefromCSXtocontainer and forest products. OurEfficient Distribution to Two Thirds of the Norfolk Southern. distinction, is based on our ability to closelyUnited States and Canadian populations within Quiteasidefromcontainertraf- 48 - 72 Hours ficandRo/Ro,therewasotherfreightcoordinate your Stevedoring, Warehousing thatneededtobemoved.Inparticularand Distribution Logistics. the closure of the Port of Baltimore cur-tailed coal exports from the port. In 2023 Baltimore accounted for 28% of the US coalexportsaccordingtotheEnergy Information Administration(EIA)andis the nations second-largest hub for coal exports. As a result of the closure the EIA reduced its forecasts for U.S. coal exports for April by 33% and for May by 20%FOR MORE INFORMATION from previous forecasts. EIA Administra-tor Joe DeCarolis said, We expect U.S.CONTACT US AT:coal exports to recover toward the end of the summer or early fall, but there is sig- JH STEVEDORING, INC. nificant uncertainty based on the timeline2147 South Columbus Blvd. for the port reopening and how quicklyPhiladelphia, PA 19148exporterscanadjusttoexportthroughTEL: 215-218-3060alternative ports. Shortly after the inci- FAX: 215-218-3078dents theAJOT received reports of coalWEB: www.jhstevedoring.comshipmentsbeingdivertedtotheGreat Lakes ports as well as other East CoastPENN WAREHOUSING & DISTRIBUTION, INC. ports such as Norfolk, Virginia.2147 South Columbus Blvd. Philadelphia, PA 19148g overnmenTr esPonse TEL: 215-218-3000GovernmentleaderspointtotheFAX: 215-218-3043quick action in the hours after the bridgeWEB: www.pennwarehousing.comcollapse and their work afterward to clear the temporary channels and remove the bridge as proof they can get things done. On April 9, a bi-partisan coalition of state and federal leaders met in Washing-ton with Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and others to discuss long-term plans to fund rebuilding the critical bridge'