b'28American Journal ofTransportation ajot.comPort of Prince Rupert stepping up expansion projects By Leo Ryan, AJOTFollowingaperiodupwhich had a major impact on tillthreeyearsagoasargu- Canadiansupplychainswas ably the fastest-growing con- another important factor, indus-tainer port in North America,try observers indicated.the Port of Prince Rupert inThe downturn trend car-northernBritishColumbiariedoverintoearly2024, is pursuing a comprehensivewithtotaltrafficatallter-strategy to broaden its cargominalsinJanuarypegged base by developing big newat1.75milliontonsversus transloadinginfrastructuretheyearearlier2.1million and energy export facilities. tons. At DP World Fairview The closest North Ameri- ContainerTerminal,January DP World $350 million Centerm Expansion Project was completed in 2023. can West Coast port to Asia2024volumeamountedto in 2023 handled 23.5 million625,670 tons versus the year-metric tons of cargo, five per- earlier 765,635 tons.Port of Vancouver focusing oncent less than in 2022. Hard- theComparativelyspeaking, est hit was container traffic,Northwest Alliance ports which plunged by 32% to 7of Tacoma and Seattle were long-term growth trajectory million tons. Thus, containershowingevidenceofcon-cargotranslatedintoTEUstainerrecoverywhileLos fellfromjustoveronemil- Angeles was forecasting a 20 By Leo Ryan, AJOT lion units in 2022 to 704,248percent increase in Q1 2024.TEUs in 2023. Commenting to the Amer-Followingadeclineincontainercargo Despite short-term fluctuations, CanadasThismarkedthethirdicanJournalofTransporta-last year, 2024 is showing signs of an uptickcontainer trade remains on a long-term growthconsecutiveyearofvolumetion,RonCorey,president at Canadas largest port while latest availabletrajectory,andwesawencouragingsignsofdeclineandreflectedchal- oftheFreightManagement 2023 figures for total traffic to mid-June pointrecoveryinQ4asyear-over-yearvolumeslengesofshiftingglobalAssociation of Canada, said: to continuing robust shipments of bulk com- started to grow, the VFPA said. This long- shipping routes, soft demandAgriculturetrafficvolumes modities led by grain. term growth trajectory is due to several factorsfor imports, and competitionhavebeenhistoricallyinan In 2023, we saw a softening of containerincluding:ongoingeconomicandpopulationwithotherNorthAmericanupward trend from Canadian volumes moving through the Port of Vancouver,growth in Canada and around the world andtrade gateways for discretion- westcoastports.However, which was in line with trends seen across theincreasing demand for Canadian commodities. ary cargo, Prince Rupert portearly 2024 has seen Canadian West Coast, the Vancouver Fraser Port Author- Last year, the Port of Vancouver handledofficials have noted. rail carloads flat compared to ity (VFPA) observed in an e-mailed statement3.1 million TEUs versus 3.55 million TEUs inTheJuly2023docker(PROJECTScontinued on to the American Journal of Transportation. (TRAJECTORYcontinued on page 29) strike in British Columbia portspage 31)With more than 250 locations across five continents, we are a premier terminal SSAMarineoperator offering a full spectrum of services and cargo handling.www.ssamarine.com A Carrix Enterprise'