The US West Coast ports are ending their container dwell fee, that threatened to fine cargo owners who didn’t pick up their containers quickly enough, following a 92% decline in ageing cargo over the last 14 months.
The United States’ largest port complex said it will end the dwell fee, in another sign of easing congestion on the West Coast.
The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will phase out the option to collect a terminal dwell fee on the 24th January 2023, having first announced it in October 2021. Neither port has issued the fee since it was implemented.
When they launched the dwell fee, the ports said that they we would prefer not to collect a dime, because that would mean that containers were moving off their docks, and it seems that that is exactly what has occurred.
The dwell fee was set to apply to ocean carriers in cases where imports were left on marine terminals for longer than nine days. It was bought in, in an attempt to tackle overwhelming congestion on the West Coast, but as cargo volumes have fallen over the last few months, congestions at Los Angeles and Long Beach have largely evaporated.
Shippers have avoided the West Coast in recent months due to uncertainty over dockworker negotiations, leading to elevated volumes at East Coast and Gulf ports. Ports in areas including New York and Houston are now contemplating their own dwell fees as they handle record volumes and experience congestion.
The West Coast ports are now focused on bringing more containers back from the East Coast and Gulf ports and are assuring shippers that they have capacity and are ready for more business.
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