N.Y.-N.J. Port Sets Container Cargo Record
The Port of New York and New Jersey, third largest in the United States, set a record in 2014 for cargo volume with 3.3 million containers handled, which was 4.1% above the previous record set in 2012, port officials said.
A statement from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said last year's volume was 5.4% above 2013, even though containership calls were down in 2014 by 2.3%. The statement said the reduction in vessel calls reflected the trend toward larger ships.
The largest East Coast port’s activity topped Los Angeles and Long Beach, California, the nation’s two largest ports. Those ports combined raised volume 3.6% in 2014, marking their third-busiest year ever.
“Our port is continuing to reap the benefits of an uptick in the economy, which has resulted in the hiring of more dockworkers and economic growth for the region,” said Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Executive Director Pat Foye, who credited the addition of 601 longshore workers to handle more cargo.
Other East Coast ports, such as Charleston, South Carolina, also have reported record 2014 cargo levels.
The New York-New Jersey port authority also said intermodal shipments through its Express Rail facility set a record of 465,405 containers, a 9.3% improvement.
The port has multiple capital projects in progress.
One of them is a $1.6 billion project to raise the height of the Bayonne Bridge so larger ships can fit under the span when a related channel-deepening project also is completed. Those larger vessels are expected after the Panama Canal expansion is finished early next year. The project on the bridge connecting New Jersey to Staten Island is slated to be done in the summer of 2016.
Another capital project there will add another Express Rail facility.
In its statement, the port authority said China by far is the import leader with 923,975 containers, more than five times larger than the next largest countries, India and Germany.
