Fees dropping for smaller carriers at Vancouver Port

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VANCOUVER, BC – Smaller trucking companies will enjoy lower fees when hauling containers through the Port of Vancouver, under a new fee structure that is effective January 1.

About one third of companies that access the port – representing the smallest businesses among them — will pay $25,000 per year instead of the previous $35,000. The port’s Truck Licensing System is operated on a cost-recovery basis.

The new fee structure responds to feedback from the carriers and government officials who agreed that existing charges were disproportionate, the Vancouver Port Authority says.

“We heard concerns from trucking companies and the government of Canada, including Lower Mainland members of parliament,” said Peter Xotta, vice president – planning and operations. “We took that feedback seriously and believe we have now addressed the concerns raised.”

“In setting the new access charges, the port authority proposed three alternative solutions and presented them to local container trucking companies and government for review and discussion,” he added.”Changes were made to incorporate what we heard, which ultimately led us to a solution that will benefit the industry overall.”

The new fees cover the cost of a framework that was established in 2014 to address driver concerns about compensation. Changes at that time included the creation of the Office of the B.C. Trucking Commissioner, and a whistle-blowing mechanism and audit program that issues penalties to companies that don’t pay drivers according to agreed wages.

Drivers at the port are now compensated by terminal operators during excessive waiting times. Today, about 9% of drivers are forced to wait beyond pre-set limits, and since 2015 more than $4 million in wait-time penalties have been paid out, the port says.

 

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John G. Smith is Newcom Media's vice-president - editorial, and the editorial director of its trucking publications -- including Today's Trucking, trucknews.com, and Transport Routier. The award-winning journalist has covered the trucking industry since 1995.


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