Government of Canada announces funding to improve trucking efficiency at Canada's busiest port

Follows through on Joint Action Plan to support an enhanced common reservation system at Port Metro Vancouver

VANCOUVER, June 12, 2014 /CNW/ - 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.

SOURCE: Transport Canada