Cargo volumes up after lifting of Manila truck ban

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MICT Berth Aprilshot4Manila’s two international ports posted higher cargo volumes a week after the City of Manila lifted its truck ban on September 13, according to the Federation of Philippine Industries (FPI).

FPI president George Chua in a statement said Manila International Container Terminal (MICT) recorded a 22% rise in the average number of import containers moved by trucks while export and empty container movement jumped 19.5%.

Manila South Harbor (MSH), on the other hand, registered a 23% increase in its average daily import and export movement compared to when the truck ban was still in effect.

“The increase in movement brought about by the lifting of the Manila City truck ban will result in stable prices of goods and will definitely save jobs,” Chua said.

According to FPI, the Cabinet Cluster on Port Congestion (CCPC) is targeting an 80% utilization rate for Manila container terminals.

A measure being done to complement the lifting of Manila’s truck ban is the relocation of overstaying Customs-cleared containers from MICT and MSH. Recently, 135 such containers were relocated to Subic, bringing to 405 twenty-footers the total number of transferred containers to the Northern Luzon port.

Another 135 twenty-footers were scheduled to have been shipped out from Manila on September 26.

On September 22, Manila port operators completed the transfer of 2,000 twentry-equivalent units (TEUs) of overstaying Customs-cleared boxes to a four-hectare facility in Cabuyao, Laguna.

On September 28, another 2,000 TEUs of overstaying containers were to have been transferred via trucks to the Cabuyao inland container depot.

Meanwhile, FPI said Task Force Pantalan, the inter-agency agency designed to solve port congestion, is deploying additional personnel to strengthen enforcement and guarantee the smooth flow of trucks. – Roumina Pablo

Photo courtesy of International Container Terminal Services, Inc