We use cookies to provide you with a better experience. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies in accordance with our Cookie Policy.
  • ::COVID-19 COVERAGE::
  • INDUSTRY PRESS ROOM
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
  • MEDIA FILE
  • Create Account
  • Sign In
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Free Newsletters
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC
    • Subscriptions
    • Podcast
    • Webcasts
    • Blogs
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Best Practices
      • Change Me
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • The Logistics of Defense
      • Logistics Problem Solving
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Public Sector Logistics
      • Two Sides of the Logistics Coin
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • MODEX 2020
    • Upload Your Video
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC
    • Subscriptions
    • Podcast
    • Webcasts
    • Blogs
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Best Practices
      • Change Me
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • The Logistics of Defense
      • Logistics Problem Solving
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Public Sector Logistics
      • Two Sides of the Logistics Coin
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • MODEX 2020
    • Upload Your Video
Home » Carriers at full strength in Northeast, but some customers still sitting idle
newsworthy

Carriers at full strength in Northeast, but some customers still sitting idle

November 8, 2012
Mark B. Solomon
No Comments

As the Northeast U.S. reels from the mega-storm called Sandy and faces possible additional difficulties from follow-on storm Athena, some carriers serving the region find their recovery efforts are ahead of those of their customers.

Con-way Freight, one of the country's largest less-than-truckload (LTL) carriers, reports that about 10 percent of its customers in the affected regions remain closed, even though the carrier is operational. For the LTL division of Con-way Inc., the issue now "is getting freight flows current and balanced in the system, and completing the delivery of freight into the affected areas," said Gary N. Frantz, a Con-way spokesman, in an e-mail.

Jeff Rogers, head of YRC Freight, the long-haul unit of YRC Worldwide, said through a spokeswoman that the company was experiencing similar issues with its customer base. Rogers was unable to quantify at press time how many customers remain closed.

Susan L. Rosenberg, a spokeswoman for UPS Inc., said some UPS customers are closed but more are reopening each day. Shipment backlogs have been cleared, Rosenberg said. Some customers that are either closed or at minimal operating levels have executed "return-to-shipper" requests or have redirected shipments to other locations so impacted facilities can recover, she said.

UPS is still not operating in 19 ZIP codes in the New York metropolitan area and seven in neighboring New Jersey. It has added three ZIP codes in Massachusetts to that list. Athena has hit the Northeast and New England with rain, snow, high winds, and coastal flooding.

FedEx Corp. said its FedEx Express air unit, the operations most affected by Sandy, will hold shipments at FedEx locations for customers that have yet to reopen, according to Chris Stanley, a FedEx spokesman. Stanley said he wasn't aware of any specific customer that was still shuttered.

Stanley said FedEx's operations "are moving near normal," though it continues to have difficulty serving the region's hardest hit areas. Athena is "not anything we can't work around," he said.

Meanwhile, the Port of Virginia said it is in the process of returning to the Northeast between 5,800 and 6,500 loaded containers that were scheduled to call at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey but were diverted to Virginia after Sandy forced the bi-state agency to shut its marine terminals for a week. In addition, 3,500 automobiles diverted to Virginia are being shipped back, port officials said.

Most of the returned goods will move by rail because truckers face multiple challenges heading into the affected region, port officials said. About 1,200 containers will move to New York, New Jersey, and Philadelphia via barge. Virginia is no longer receiving diverted vessels or cargo.

"We're extremely busy dealing with the backlog of cargo, and it is going to take some time to get completely back to normal," said Rodney W. Oliver, interim executive director of the Virginia Port Authority, which runs the state's ports. "We are working to move the cargo to its destination by any means available: truck, rail, and barge."

ALAN Chief: Recovery to Take Years
The American Logistics Aid Network (ALAN), which connects the supply chain community with governments and organizations involved in disaster aid, said Thursday its efforts have shifted from relief to a recovery process that Jock Menzies, ALAN's president, said will likely take years to complete.

"We have seen an outpouring of support from the supply chain community," Menzies said. "To date, donation offers have included warehouse space, office space, material handling equipment, and engineering expertise."

Menzies cautioned that the supply chain is working through the "early stages" of this disaster and that it "will be critical to sustain this momentum to ensure that all needs are met."

According to Menzies, the best way to help is to offer monetary donations to reputable disaster relief organizations or make contributions of bulk commodities. Menzies urged individuals and organizations to "donate responsibly by knowing what is needed and [by] responding to posted requests for support."

More information can be found here.

Transportation Trucking Parcel & Postal Carriers
KEYWORDS Con-way FedEx UPS YRC Worldwide
  • Related Articles

    Surge in Dow transports reflects improvement, but industry nirvana may still be a way off

    Cash earmarked for logistics M&A sitting idle

    U.S. manufacturing gained strength in February; new orders, backlogs surge; end inventory levels still low

Marksolomon
Mark Solomon joined DC VELOCITY as senior editor in August 2008, and was promoted to his current position on January 1, 2015. He has spent more than 30 years in the transportation, logistics and supply chain management fields as a journalist and public relations professional. From 1989 to 1994, he worked in Washington as a reporter for the Journal of Commerce, covering the aviation and trucking industries, the Department of Transportation, Congress and the U.S. Supreme Court. Prior to that, he worked for Traffic World for seven years in a similar role. From 1994 to 2008, Mr. Solomon ran Media-Based Solutions, a public relations firm based in Atlanta. He graduated in 1978 with a B.A. in journalism from The American University in Washington, D.C.

Recent Articles by Mark Solomon

Coming together for road safety: interview with Joshua Girard

Off the rails

Freight rate spikes shaking up the C-suite

You must login or register in order to post a comment.

Report Abusive Comment

Most Popular Articles

  • A look into the future of robotics

  • A primer on warehouse robots

  • Roadrunner Freight bolsters LTL capabilities with $50 million in new backing

  • Southeastern Freight Lines Promotes Marty Cox to Service Center Manager in Cincinnati, Ohio

  • Pull back or go deeper—how the pandemic influenced shipper-3PL engagement

Now Playing on DCV-TV

9cddf77b a6f2 40d3 b603 004e451106fb

Dealing with Rapidly Rising Freight Costs

DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
I don’t know if it’s because of our Two Minute Warnings, or the fact that shippers are experiencing the conditions we warned about in our Code Red webcasts, but lately, I’ve heard the same message from several C-Level and supply chain executives: Their companies are experiencing supply chain challenges and their...

FEATURED WHITE PAPERS

  • Special Report: Supply Chain Trends in Retail & Consumer Goods

  • Fortify Your Operational Resilience

  • Cold Storage Automation: Leveraging Advanced Technologies to Meet Increasing Demand

  • The modern warehouse: Maximizing productivity and capacity

View More

Subscribe to DC Velocity Magazine

GET YOUR FREE SUBSCRIPTION
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • NEWSLETTERS
  • ADVERTISING
  • CUSTOMER CARE
  • CONTACT
  • ABOUT
  • STAFF
  • PRIVACY POLICY

Copyright ©2021. All Rights ReservedDesign, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing