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UP suspending USWC–Chicago hub services to clear Global IV boxes
Ari Ashe, Senior Editor | Jul 15, 2021 11:23AM EDT
Union Pacific Railroad trains will not run from the West Coast to Joliet, Illinois, because the Midwest rail hub has been overwhelmed with containers piling up in stacks. Photo credit: Matthew Cone/Shutterstock.com.
Union Pacific Railroad (UP) will halt all international intermodal service from the West Coast to its Global IV terminal in Joliet, Illinois, for up to seven days beginning early Monday, an emergency measure designed to get thousands of ocean containers in stacks to their cargo owners.
The railroad confirmed the suspension from the ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach, Oakland, and Tacoma, saying it is necessary to relieve the “significant congestion at our inland intermodal terminals, most notably in Chicago.” The move goes into effect at 11:59 pm PDT July 18.
“We believe this change will allow the transportation supply chain to begin working off the backlog of Global IV-destined trains, while freeing up railcar assets to support import loading needs on the West Coast,” UP said in a statement Thursday to JOC.com. “We are working closely with the ocean carriers and collaborating wherever possible to improve the health of the supply chain.”
The suspension of service applies to all UP’s ocean carrier partners.
Reservations already obtained will be honored, but no new reservations will be allowed from the four West Coast ports, according to a Wednesday statement from CMA CGM obtained by JOC.com.
Reservations from inland rail hubs to the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will also be slashed 15 percent effective July 16, and service will be temporarily cut from six smaller backhaul lanes into Southern California, including San Antonio, Houston, Kansas City, and Dupo, Illinois, according to the CMA CGM notice.
The emergency measures are necessary to redirect efforts toward the stack of ocean containers without chassis in UP Global IV. The size of the stack is at least 2,000 containers, according to trucking executives contacted by JOC.com, though some have suggested the number is more than 3,000. UP has declined to provide an exact figure.
Boxes moved to Global III
The stack is large enough, however, that UP began moving containers last month into its shuttered Global III terminal in Rochelle, Illinois, a signal the railroad was running low on available storage space in Global IV.Containers in the Global IV stack have been stuck there for more than a month. One customer incurred as much as $11,000 in rail storage charges, a form of demurrage, with a box stuck for 50 days.
UP has since changed its policy for storage in the Global IV stack to cap the fees at $2,450 per container.