Canadian government contributing C$3M toward C$6M project to reduce trucker wait times across Port Metro Vancouver's four terminals via new technologies to improve coordination, truck movement

Cindy Allen

VANCOUVER, British Columbia , June 13, 2014 (press release) – Follows through on Joint Action Plan to support an enhanced common reservation system at Port Metro Vancouver

The Honourable Lisa Raitt, Minister of Transport, today announced that the Government of Canada is contributing $3 million to reduce trucker wait times by using new technologies to better link operations across Port Metro Vancouver's four terminals.

The Common Data Interface (CDI) project will help to better coordinate and schedule container truck movements by providing the technological capabilities to:

collect data on gate and terminal activities, which will help to coordinate multi-shift operations, especially necessary now given the terminal’s recently announced extended hours pilot;
develop an enhanced common reservation system (i.e. a centralized appointment scheduler for container trucks), which will reduce wait times and enhance efficiency of truck movements; and
measure operational performance and enforcement through the collection of location data (via GPS technology), which will help the port develop and enforce appropriate standards.

The project, which costs approximately $6 million, will receive $3 million over two years under Transport Canada’s Clean Transportation Initiative on Port-Related Trucking, with the port contributing the other half.

The implementation of the CDI project was a commitment under the Joint Action Plan with the Province of British Columbia, the port and other partners, developed to bring stability to the container trucking industry at Port Metro Vancouver. Today’s announcement meets this commitment and is expected to allow significant parts of the enhanced common reservation system to be in place before next year.
Quick Facts

Port Metro Vancouver is Canada’s largest port. In 2013, the port handled a record 135 million tonnes of cargo, an overall increase of nine per cent over 2012.
Approximately 2,000 Port Metro Vancouver licensed trucks serve the port, moving containers throughout the Lower Mainland.
The local trucking industry moves approximately 1.3 million TEUs* per year through Port Metro Vancouver. Based on 2011 economic impact study figures, the value of those goods is approximately $46 billion or roughly $885 million per week.

Quote

“This federal funding demonstrates this government’s ongoing commitment to maintain long-term stability at Port Metro Vancouver. This project, and all the measures we’ve taken under the Joint Action Plan, is helping to ensure the reliability of Canada’s Asia-Pacific Gateway and the economic well-being of Canada as a whole.”
The Honourable Lisa Raitt,
Minister of Transport

*The twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) is a standard unit for describing a ship's cargo carrying capacity, or a shipping terminal's cargo handling capacity.

Contacts

Ashley Kelahear
Director of Communications
Office of the Honourable Lisa Raitt
Minister of Transport
613-991-0700

Media Relations
Transport Canada, Ottawa
613-993-0055

Transport Canada is online at www.tc.gc.ca. Subscribe to e-news at www.tc.gc.ca/e-news or stay connected through RSS, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Flickr to keep up to date on the latest from Transport Canada.

This news release may be made available in alternative formats for persons living with visual disabilities.

* All content is copyrighted by Industry Intelligence, or the original respective author or source. You may not recirculate, redistrubte or publish the analysis and presentation included in the service without Industry Intelligence's prior written consent. Please review our terms of use.