What does the rain have to do with trucking anyways?
Rain, floods, and landslides have truckers and ports struggling to keep up with the high volume. Here’s what our expert Canadian team is saying.
Port of Vancouver
The Port of Vancouver is seeing all of the same issues as the Port of LA. The ports are backlogged, pushing vessels loading and unloading schedules out by weeks.
Another issue? Flooding and landslides. Containers are piling up while rail lines are under water. The weather conditions have only added to the tension caused by the ongoing backlogs. Drivers are now price gouging which is making containers pile up as drivers request specific payouts. All of this has made returning empties more difficult than ever.
Port of Prince Rupert
The Port of Prince Rupert has been rather slow during the last few months. But now we are seeing weather-related issues impact Prince Rupert. With there being no carriers in Prince Rupert, trucks are being forced to run 900 miles with no cargo from Vancouver or Edmonton on a one lane highway. Drivers are avoiding these 900-mile drives because they want more convenient/premium loads directly out of Vancouver heading to eastern Canada or to the United States. Driver and equipment capacity are tight. When drivers are available, they cost more than ever. We are also seeing forwarders panicking and looking for cost to divert from Prince Rupert.
The good news
We do have some good news out of Canada, there are two ports that have kept steady pace through it all. The Ports of Halifax and Montreal continue to run on schedule with little to no delays. The heavy rains and rail delays may have even helped. With the rails being down, Halifax and Montreal have had time to clear up congestion.
What’s next?
We’ve talked about the good and the bad in Canadian trucking. Our recommendation is to be proactive and get in touch with our experts ASAP. For more information, updates, and questions on the Canadian ports, contact us at canada@portxlogistics.com.