The ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles have once again decided to delay charging ocean carriers for containers that dwell at the ports for several days. The new fee, which was slated to go into effect today, was postponed until Nov. 29 at the earliest, port officials announced.
The policy—one of many announced recently to address the ongoing supply chain crisis—will charge carriers for containers that linger for nine days or more if being moved by truck, and six days or more if being moved by rail. The penalty will cost $100 per container, with the fee increasing $100 per container per day.
Officials first announced the new charge last month, and it was originally slated to go into effect Nov. 1. But it appears the mere threat of the penalty has spurred more container movement, and implementation the fee has been postponed multiple times since.
According to the Port of Long Beach, aging cargo on the docks of both ports has fallen 33% since the fee was first announced.
“The executive directors of both ports are satisfied with the progress thus far,” the Port of Long Beach’s Monday announcement said, “and will reassess fee implementation after another week of monitoring data.”
If and when the fee goes into effect, the funds will be “reinvested for programs designed to enhance efficiency, accelerate cargo velocity and address congestion impacts,” according to the Port of Long Beach.