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Port Congestion a Growing Problem

Port congestion can be compared to the sort of stop and go conditions that take place when too many cars crowd onto a single stretch of road. Traffic slows, the line of cars keeps backing up further. Everyone’s time is wasted. The same thing happens with ships in ports that are congested. They have to line up and wait for a spot to open where they can dock and unload their cargo. Ports have more limitations than highways, however, when it comes to congestion. They cannot simply expand to accommodate more ships the way highways can handle more cars. Creating more docking space will not help if the cranes and the crews that operate them do not also increase at a similar rate. The bottleneck may lie in inadequate access roads or rail lines to move freight in and out of the port. Lack of warehouse space seldom seems to be the problem, but numerous other infrastructure shortfalls can be involved. Port congestion can be temporary in nature if a calamity of some sort has affected the port’s normal operation. Storms and other weather events can damage the facilities, which will slow cargo handling until repairs are completed. Industrial accidents… read more »