Gov. John Bel Edwards, the Port of New Orleans and two global maritime companies on Dec. 13 announced the formation of a public-private partnership to build a new $1.8 billion container facility on the lower Mississippi River.

With extra holiday congestion at the El Paso border, Texas Department of Public Safety officers are conducting random enhanced inspections on commercial vehicles as they cross international ports of entry from Mexico into Texas to combat illegal activity.

Railroad workers are continuing their demand for paid sick days. The Sheet Metal, Air, Rail Transportation Union, or SMART, held an informational picket near the rail yard on Rice’s Point on the afternoon of Dec. 13.

Replacing pavement at Otay Mesa land port of entry in California is the latest of 50 modernization projects the General Services Administration has embarked on using $3.4 billion in federal infrastructure funds.

Earlier emergency orders have been extended in Georgia for supply chain and oversize permits and in Nebraska for driving hours hauling fuel.

The Office of Trade at U.S. Customs and Border Protection is launching a testing project for a global business identifier to streamline tracking of goods in supply chains.

Shippers urged the U.S. railroad regulator to create more competition in the industry during hearings in which Union Pacific Corp. was called to explain a spike in service restrictions.

The value of global trade is set to reach a new record this year, increasing by about 12% to an estimated $32 trillion, according to a U.N. report that signaled a slowdown heading into 2023.

American Trucking Associations, the Association of Bi-State Motor Carriers and the Harbor Trucking Association jointly support a recently released Notice of Proposed Rulemaking from the Federal Maritime Commission that seeks to expand the timeliness and overall level of detail and transparency for detention and demurrage invoices coming from common carrier billing parties that provide ocean carriage and storage of freight. 

A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S CEO Soren Skou will step down and will be replaced by Vincent Clerc, the current head of the transport giant’s ocean and logistics business.