Ports Briefs: POLA, California Sign MOU and Rail Corridor Election

Port of Los Angeles, State of California Partnership to Shape Future of Vincent Thomas Bridge

From left: Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka, California Secretary of Transportation Toks Omishakin and Caltrans District 7 Director Gloria Roberts

LOS ANGELES — The Port of Los Angeles, California State Transportation Agency or CalSTA and California Department of Transportation or Caltrans July 30 signed a Memorandum of Understanding or MOU establishing a planning partnership to evaluate long-term options for replacing or modifying the Vincent Thomas Bridge.

The agreement launches a planning effort to evaluate concepts that would strengthen safety, sustainability, improve freight mobility, support jobs and ensure the Port of Los Angeles remains competitive as global trade continues to evolve.

The MOU establishes a roadmap for the port, CalSTA and Caltrans to evaluate replacement or modification concepts through the Caltrans project development process. The agreement is focused on planning, technical evaluation and environmental review to identify the most effective long-term path forward.

Subject to approval by the Los Angeles Board of Harbor Commissioners, the port will provide $5 million for preliminary engineering, environmental studies and other technical work needed to evaluate potential alternatives.

Completed in 1963, the Vincent Thomas Bridge is undergoing a major redecking project to address maintenance and safety needs. That work does not address the bridge’s 185-foot vertical clearance, which limits access for the newest generation of larger container vessels serving global trade.

The international shipping industry continues to deploy larger, more fuel-efficient container ships capable of carrying 22,000 to 24,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), which cannot pass under the bridge, constraining approximately 40% of the port’s container terminal capacity that lies north of the bridge.

POLA wrote in its press release that expanding access for these new, larger vessels, which are capable of running on alternative maritime fuels including e-methanol, would advance the port’s sustainability goals and reduce emissions per container moved at the terminals closest to impacted communities

Major U.S. Rail Corridor Elects Officers

LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles City Councilman Tim McOsker has been elected chair and Long Beach City Councilwoman Suely Saro has been elected vice chair of the governing board of the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority or ACTA for the agency’s 2026-2027 term. ACTA is a joint powers authority formed by the cities of Long Beach and Los Angeles that manages the 20-mile dedicated freight rail corridor connecting the nation’s busiest port complex to the transcontinental rail network. ACTA’s seven-member board represents both cities, the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, and the Los Angeles Country Metropolitan Transportation Authority.