Canadian container ports: shipping trends and policy issues

Abstract: Canada's major container ports face considerable challenges from rapid changes in inland and ocean transportation systems. Currently, one of the major issues facing ocean shipping is the surplus supply of available capacity, with the resultant decline in ocean freight rates. Increased vessel efficiency is being sought through economies of scale (larger ships) and reduced vessel operating costs. Larger ships have led to reductions in the numbers of ports at which a vessel will call. The resultant rise of “load centres” means geographically disadvantaged ports will experience decreases in their container traffic throughput. The past few years have witnessed the phenomenal rise of double-stacked container trains travelling from American west coast ports to various inland destinations. A number of Pacific shipping lines are opting for this land-bridging approach to serve east coast destinations rather than by the traditional all-water route via the Panama Canal. Other issues facing Canadian ports include: intermodalism, regulatory reform and improving labour productivity. To effectively compete in today's turbulent ocean shipping and inland transportation environment, Canadian ports will have to monitor and adapt to the rapid changes affecting their container terminal operations. Sommaire: Les principaux ports canadiens sont confrontés à de nombreux défis en raison des changements rapides qui surviennent dans les systèmes de transport à l'intérieur des terres et sur les mers. À l'heure actuelle, l'un des plus grands problèmes vient du fait qu'il y a trop de navires porte-conteneurs, ce qui entraîne une baisse des tarifs d'expédition. On cherche à ce que les bâtiments soient le plus efficace possible en ayant des bateaux plus grands et en réduisant les coûts de fonctionnement. La mise en service de bâtiments plus grands a réduit le nombre de ports où ceux-ci peuvent faire escale. La montée des “centres de chargement” signifie que les ports mal situés géographiquement verront décliner le débit de leur trafic.