Container traffic jam in the USA is ‘getting worse every day’

About 100 cargo ships, each with 24,000 containers, are moored in front of ports in Long Beach and Los Angeles. They are waiting to unload their goods, which are mainly produced in Asia. On average, they have to be patient for about a week, Welt reports. This leads to bottlenecks in goods and higher freight rates.

Christmas is coming in less than two months – the most profitable time for many businesses. But because the container is crowded, there is a risk of a bad quarter at Christmas. That is why the head of a start-up logistics company called for several actions – some of which were successful.

“The circulatory system of our global economy has collapsed,” Ryan Petersen wrote on Twitter. Negative feedback loops are making things worse every day. On a harbor tour in Long Beach, he saw 100 cranes, but only about seven empty containers, he reported.

The problem is that while as many goods as possible are produced again in Asia, the United States is not. This results in many empty containers on the trucks but not allowed to be unloaded. Petersen explains that this should only happen in certain places. And because stacking is prohibited, there is not enough space.

Result: “The trucks store empty containers and cannot pick up any full containers at the port.” On the other hand, the port has no place to unload containers from ships. However, ships cannot pick up any empty ships and take them away.

Long Beach has now responded to the problem and one of Petersen’s demands: Up to six empty containers can be stacked, freeing up space in port, warehouse and trucking. In addition, work can now be carried out around the clock at large ports on the West Coast of the United States.

It remains to be seen if this will save Christmas business. Many companies have already taken their own measures. For example, Amazon requires its customers to order gifts four weeks earlier than usual.