Port News: POLB closer to Zero-Emissions and Dwell Fee Still On Hold

Port of Long Beach Takes Another Zero Emissions Step 

LONG BEACH — Heavy-duty electric trucks servicing San Pedro Bay port terminals can now charge for free at the Port of Long Beach, which announced it has opened the first two public charging stations in the nation for the vehicles.

The port has partnered with EV Connect, a provider of charge-management solutions for electric vehicles, to provide the stations at the Clean Truck Program Terminal Access Center, 1265 Harbor Ave., Long Beach 90813. View the fact sheet for details and eligibility: https://tinyurl.com/rtex2279 

In order to tackle greenhouse gasses and criteria pollutants, the Port of Long Beach has set a goal of all zero-emissions cargo-handling equipment by 2030 and a zero-emissions drayage truck fleet by 2035. About 17% of the cargo-handling equipment at the port is electric powered, the largest such fleet in the United States. As a signal of progress, in September, the port announced that a trucking company partner will convert to fully zero emissions by 2025. Read more about the project here: https://tinyurl.com/3zheyazw 

Last month, the port also announced it will receive a $30.1 million grant (https://tinyurl.com/4tsymdp2) from the U.S. Department of Transportation to deploy the nation’s largest fleet of manually operated, zero-emissions cargo handling equipment at a single marine terminal.

Container Dwell Fee Put on Hold Through Dec. 16

SAN PEDRO — The San Pedro Bay ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will postpone consideration of the “Container Dwell Fee” for four weeks, until Dec. 16.

Since the program was announced on Oct. 25, 2021, the two ports have seen a combined decline of 87% in aging cargo on the docks.

The executive directors of both ports will reassess fee implementation after monitoring data over the next month. Fee implementation has been postponed by both ports since the start of the program. The Long Beach and Los Angeles Boards of Harbor Commissioners have both extended the fee program through Jan. 24, 2023.