April 22nd, 2010

The Port of Tacoma reports that it handled a total of 30,716 intermodal container lifts at its four intermodal yards in March 2010, up 20% from the same month last year. The total also marks the highest monthly intermodal volume for the port in the last 18 months.

Increases were seen in both international and domestic intermodal rail volumes in March. The port cited its intermodal rail incentive program, which encourages the use of rail for short-haul containers, and a new Union Pacific domestic service that brings containers through the port’s South Intermodal Rail Yard as factors in the volume growth.

Year-to-date intermodal volumes, however, are down, the port said, driven by a significant drop in foreign container traffic. Breakbulk cargo, however, is up slightly, at 17,545 short tons through the end of March, and grain is up 7.5%, at 1,544,327 short tons. Other commodities are still below 2009 levels, however, including automobiles (both tonnage and units) and gypsum (tonnage). Details can be found in the port’s cargo volumes repo