Port of Tacoma expects banner year in 2002

Officials at the Port of Tacoma officials say that 2002 is expected to be the best year ever for container volumes. The Port expects to handle 1.44 million containers in 2002, a 9 % increase from 2001. To date, the Port’s best container year was 2000, when it handled 1.376 million TEUs.

Year-to-date through June, the Port’s container volume is 674,557 TEUs, up 8.3 percent from 2001. In June the Port handled 148,800 TEUs.

The Port has also posted an estimated 32 percent increase in container lifts for the year in the Port’s three intermodal rail yards to a record 351,000 lifts.

“The fact that the Port is able to handle these increases in intermodal volumes is a tribute to the productivity of our longshore labor force, as well as to the fine efforts of Tacoma Rail and our two major railroads-Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Union Pacific. Our recent infrastructure improvements, such as the Port of Tacoma Road Overpass FAST Corridor project, and our North Intermodal Yard upgrade, are also keys to our ability
to efficiently handle these higher container volumes,” said Jack Fabulich, President of the Port of Tacoma Commission.

International container volumes were up 15 percent for the first half of the year, because of increases in container trade with China, and the fact that Lloyd-Tristino started a new China service through Tacoma in April 2002.

Other factors contributing to the Port’s container growth include improving Asian economies and a weaker U.S. dollar, resulting in U.S. export growth.