The Intermodal Motor Carriers Conference of American Trucking Associations has won a favorable judgment in its case against the Ocean Carrier Equipment Management Association and others in a dispute involving chassis choice for carriers that operate at maritime and inland ports.
Federal Maritime Commission Chief Administrative Law Judge Erin Wirth on Feb. 6 issued a partial summary judgment in favor of IMCC, which alleged in their initial 2020 filing that OCEMA and 11 international ocean carriers violated the Shipping Act of 1984 by inflating prices for intermodal chassis at dozens of ports nationwide.
At most major ports, ocean shipping companies have historically controlled the chassis-leasing business under the Uniform Intermodal Interchange and Facilities Access Agreement, which is administered by a 10-member group of industry representatives. At these ports, trucking companies are directed toward chassis available for rent and the rates being charged.
At the center of the dispute are agreements shippers make with intermodal equipment providers at ports — agreements into which IMCC-maintained motor carriers historically have had no say, even though they are bound to use those providers’ equipment. This, IMCC charged, put carriers at a disadvantage. The two sides negotiated for months in search of a compromise, with the lack of availability of chassis, the overall quality of the equipment and its pricing all at the center of talks.
The combined Los Angeles/Long Beach port complex moves an estimated 20 million 20-foot-equivalent containers annually on chassis, either to their final decision or to rail yards where they are shipped on trains. In recent years the Port of Savannah has nearly doubled its capacity, to nearly 6 million containers a year and is now the second-busiest port on the East Coast. Chicago and Memphis are major freight rail centers.
For years, ocean carriers owned and leased chassis and other intermodal equipment to trucking companies that truck drivers use to move containers from ports to inland locations. About 10 years ago, ocean carriers began working with third-party leasing companies to reduce their cost of managing and owning containers.
Trucking companies have long complained about the quality of chassis at ports, especially related to tires, brakes and lighting. Some chassis distributors have upgraded their equipment by replacing older chassis or refurbishing them and adding radial tires, disc brakes and LED lighting.
