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Toronto, December 2, 2022
The U.S. Senate moved quickly yesterday to avert a rail strike that the Biden administration and business leaders warned would have had devastating consequences for the nation's economy.
The Senate passed a bill to bind rail companies and workers to a proposed settlement that was reached between the rail companies and union leaders in September. That settlement had been rejected by some of the 12 unions involved, creating the possibility of a strike beginning December 9.
The Senate vote came one day after the House voted to impose the agreement. The measure now goes to President Joe Biden's desk for his signature.
"I'm very glad that the two sides got together to avoid a shutdown, which would have been devastating for the American people, to the American economy and so many workers across the country," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) told reporters.
Schumer spoke as Labor Secretary Marty Walsh and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg emphasized to Democratic senators that rail companies would begin shutting down operations well before a potential strike would begin. The administration wanted the bill on Biden's desk by the weekend.
Read more in an article from Transport Topics.
For more information, please call David Lychek, Director – Ocean & Air Services at (905) 882-4880, ext. 1207.
Toronto, November 22, 2022
Due to severe congestion issues in the GTA, the timely return of empty containers remains a serious problem. Empty return terminals are at over-capacity in most cases, resulting in limited options to return empty containers until space is available. As a result, drayage providers are forced to hold empty containers at their depots, awaiting a return time to become available. The end result is that the drayage companies are charging additional fees such as pre-pull and daily yard storage fees.
Coupled with this, steamship lines continue to charge daily detention fees once free time expires. All such additional fees are being passed onto shippers, who are bearing the brunt of these unanticipated costs, which in many cases are very significant. The issue is also compounding the existing problem of limited drayage availability, as cartage companies equipment is tied up, holding these empty containers on site.
We are monitoring the situation closely and will advise accordingly.
For more information, please call David Lychek, Director – Ocean & Air Services at (905) 882-4880, ext. 1207.
Toronto, September 29, 2022
The current industrial action and strike at the Port of Liverpool is due to end this Monday, October 3rd at 5:59a.m.. The union has now confirmed a further period of strike action, which will take place from 6:00a.m. on Tuesday, October 11th to 6:00a.m. on Monday, October 17th, 2022.
Thus far, the Port of Felixstowe has not formally announced any additional strike action. The strike in Felixstowe is to end on Wednesday, October 5th, 2022.
Below is a summary of the strike dates by port:
| Liverpool: | September 20, 2022 – October 3, 2022 | |
| Liverpool: | October 11, 2022 – October 17, 2022 | |
| Felixstowe: | September 27, 2022 – October 5, 2022 |
We will continue to keep you updated on this situation.
For more information, please feel free to contact me directly.
For more information, please call Debbie McGuire, Director – Freight Solutions at (905) 882-4880, ext. 1308.
Toronto, September 16, 2022
The following message was issued by the Canadian International Freight Forwarders Association (CIFFA) on Thursday, September 15, 2022:
U.S. Railroad Strike Averted as Unions, Companies Reach Tentative Deal
Major U.S. railroads and unions secured a tentative deal after 20 hours of intense talks brokered by the Biden administration to avert a rail shutdown that could have hit food and fuel supplies nationwide.
The tentative deal now goes to the unions to be voted on. Even if those votes fail, a rail shutdown that could have happened as soon as midnight Friday has been averted for several weeks due to the standard language included in such a deal.
For more information, please call David Lychek, Director – Ocean & Air Services at (905) 882-4880, ext. 1207.
Toronto, September 14, 2022
Business and government officials are bracing for the possibility of a nationwide rail strike at the end of this week, while talks carry on between the largest U.S. freight railroads and their unions.
The railroads have already started to curtail shipments of hazardous materials and have announced plans to stop hauling refrigerated products ahead of Friday's strike deadline. Businesses that rely on Norfolk Southern, Union Pacific, BNSF, CSX, Kansas City Southern and other railroads to deliver their raw materials and finished products have started planning for the worst.
Norfolk Southern and CSX said the embargoes were necessary to ensure that critical or even toxic freight is not left abandoned.
We are monitoring the situation very closely, and will advise as new developments unfold.
For more information, please call David Lychek, Director – Ocean & Air Services at (905) 882-4880, ext. 1207.
Toronto, September 8, 2022
Toronto Intermodal Terminal Update – September 8, 2022
Severe congestion issues continue to hamper the movement of intermodal containers in the Toronto area. Despite hope that the situation would begin to improve in the early fall, we have yet to see any noticeable changes, in fact, the issues remain and are actually getting worse. Many truck carriers are refusing to take on new business, as they are completely overwhelmed, and those that are attempting to move cargo are no longer able to pre-pull containers due to lack of available equipment. The inability to pre-pull containers means that the units will incur storage at the railyard, at rates that begin at CAD $200.00 per day, with daily rate increases typically after three days. On top of this, steamship lines will charge demurrage fees, also on a daily basis, with a similar fee structure in which the daily fees increase after a set number of days.
The main issues relate to less available drayage opportunities to move containers, as the number of carriers and owner operators involved in this business sector have been reduced. Severe congestion at inland rail terminals is also delaying the efficient collection of containers and the subsequent empty returns. What is unique in the case of this situation is that import volumes into Canada, that typically cause congestion issues, are actually lower than last year, so the issues clearly point to inefficiencies at inland terminals. Whatever the cause, the ripple effect of these ongoing issues is additional fees for shippers such as terminal storage, waiting time, chassis detention and steamship line detention and demurrage.
We are monitoring the situation very closely, and will advise as new developments unfold.
For more information, please call David Lychek, Director – Ocean & Air Services at (905) 882-4880, ext. 1207.
Toronto, September 7, 2022
More than 560 port operatives and maintenance engineers at the Port of Liverpool, one of the UK's largest container ports, will go on strike from September 19th to October 3rd over pay and working conditions. Workers will also strike over Mersey Docks and Harbour Company's (MDHC) failure to honour the 2021 pay agreement. This includes the company not undertaking a promised pay review, which last happened in 1995.
The strike action will severely disrupt both shipping and road transport in Liverpool and the surrounding areas, the Unite union warned, adding that more strikes are set to be scheduled in the coming weeks if MDHC fails to put forward an acceptable offer to the workers. The planned Liverpool strike comes on the heels of an eight-day walkout by 1,900 Unite members at Felixstowe, Britain's largest container port, last month, which congested supply lines, but failed to cause major disruption in an industry already under pressure.
For more information, please call Debbie McGuire, Director – Freight Solutions at (905) 882-4880, ext. 1308.
Toronto, August 17, 2022
Last week, workers at the port of Felixstowe failed to reach an agreement over the level of pay increase with their employer. As a result, they are holding a strike from August 21 – August 29, which is going to impact supply chains and cause disruption to maritime trade. Felixstowe, northeast of London, is a key hub for imports into the UK.
This week, more than 500 workers at the port of Liverpool are set to strike, again due to a dispute of the level of pay increase with their employers. The workers' Union has provided its full support behind its members to fight for a fair cost-of-living pay increase. Currently, dates are not known for the strike, however, the announcement has confirmed that no strike action will take place at the port of Liverpool before the third week of September.
We will continue to keep you updated as this situation unfolds.
For more information, please call Debbie McGuire, Director – Freight Solutions at (905) 882-4880, ext. 1308.
Toronto, August 16, 2022
Toronto Intermodal Terminal Update – August 16, 2022
The intermodal container terminals and cargo handling situation in Toronto remains extremely precarious as a recent surge of import containers has further contributed to the overcapacity at ports and inland terminals. The result is severe congestion, delays and additional costs to importers. Container hauliers are waiting upwards of 4 to 6 hours to collect loads from Toronto rail terminals. Empty returns are often not able to obtain reservations, as the return terminals are also at capacity. As such importers are faced with extra fees such as prep-pull, waiting time, chassis detention and steamship line detention.
How long this will last is somewhat unpredictable. Some indications suggest cargo volumes have peaked and will reduce in the following months, which should ease the pressure. However, given the supply chain is so severely compromised, improvements in overall service could take quite awhile.
Currently, many truck carriers are now refusing to take on new business as they do not have the capacity. As of this week, several carriers are stating their equipment is booked until September, which would mean containers could sit at terminal collecting storage and demurrage. At the same time many intermodal truck carriers are advising their yards are full, which means they are unable to pre-pull containers from terminals in order to avoid incurring storage fees which are charged daily after free time expires.
We are monitoring the situation very closely and will advise as new developments unfold.
For more information, please call David Lychek, Director – Ocean & Air Services at (905) 882-4880, ext. 1207.
Toronto, July 29, 2022
CN Rail Implements Measures to Deal with Congestion Issues in Toronto – July 29, 2022:
CN Rail has introduced additional measures at rail facilities in the Toronto area to keep the consumer goods supply chain moving, and maintain fluidity at our ports.
Effective July 18, 2022:
- CN opened a third relief container yard in the Toronto area:
Container Storage Solutions
8373 Mayfield Rd, Brampton, ON L6P 0H5
(24 hours, 7 days a week operation).Please note: CN Rail may arrange to shuttle containers from other Toronto terminals, such as CN Brampton and CN Malport, to this third location to deal with congestion issues. For example, if an inbound container is destined to CN Brampton, CN reserves the right to in turn transfer this unit to the relief container yard noted above, and there will be a fee associated with this service.
An update on related fees are outlined below:
- The container shuttle fee will increase from $150 to $300 per unit.
- The storage fees for units at Mississauga Intermodal Service Center will increase to be the same as storage fees in Brampton and Malport (Group 1).
- The storage fee for all other locations (Paul's Transport and Container Storage Solutions) is $300 per unit per day.
For more information, please call David Lychek, Director – Ocean & Air Services at (905) 882-4880, ext. 1207.
Toronto, June 13, 2022
Congestion at ports and inland terminals across Canada remains an ongoing hurdle for importers anxious to receive their shipments. The Ports of Vancouver, Halifax and Montreal are all dealing with excessive volumes, resulting in the delay of cargo moving to inland terminals. Once cargo does arrive at destination terminals, cartage companies are also having difficulty efficiently handling the volume, resulting in a severely compromised logistic chain. Many trucking companies are overbooked and are only able to schedule deliveries 1-2 weeks from arrival date, and because of the long waiting time at terminals, carriers are increasing their hourly fees for waiting time. As a result, shippers' costs are increasing as their shipments are subject to waiting time, rail storage, yard storage and chassis detention fees due to the congestion issues now present across Canada.
There does not seem to be any relief in sight, as cargo volumes are expected to increase with the reopening of China after Covid-19 lockdowns, and the subsequent arrival of pent-up orders. Coupled with this is the typical summer/fall peak season, which occurs on an annual basis, as shippers stock up with inventory in advance of the busy fall/winter retail seasons. This sudden uptick in demand for freight services is expected to cause renewed pressure across the entire supply chain and exacerbate the congestion problems now being experienced.
For more information, please call David Lychek, Director – Ocean & Air Services at (905) 882-4880, ext. 1207.
Toronto, May 30, 2022
Upon implementation of Release 2 of the Canada Border Services Agency’s (CBSA) Assessment and Revenue Management (CARM) program, all importers must post security, for duty and GST, in order to obtain release of goods into Canada.
As per Ted Gallivan, Executive Vice President of the CBSA, May 25, 2022, “The CBSA plans to present a revised project plan to the Treasury Board that shows the Go-live date (for CARM R2) as being 1 of 2 dates in 2023, either May 2023 or October 2023, in order to lock down the related regulations, rules of engagement, and to be sure that onboarding is complete.”
CARM Release 2 – Scheduled for May or October 2023
Key Functionality for External Clients:
IMPORTANT:
All importers to Canada (whether resident or non-resident) must take certain steps – if not, they simply won't be able to import into Canada once CARM Release 2 comes into effect (May or October 2023).
For more information, please call Brian Rowe, Director – Customs Compliance & Regulatory Affairs at (905) 882-4880, ext. 1213.
