Dive Brief:
- The state of California awarded several ports millions of dollars in grants to improve the movements of goods in supply chains, according to multiple port press releases in July.
- The Port of Oakland received $119 million, the Port of Long Beach $383 million and the Port of Los Angeles a total of $233 million from the California State Transportation Agency. The agency had set aside $1.2 billion to fund 15 projects that will increase capacity to move goods throughout the state's global trade gateways.
- "These investments – unprecedented in scope and scale – will modernize our ports, reduce pollution, eliminate bottlenecks and create a more dynamic distribution network," Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a July statement.
Dive Insight:
Investments to help efficiently move goods throughout California's global trade gateways has been a focus for the state since the pandemic exposed several weak links.
At the time, the state's ports experienced an unprecedented surge in cargo volumes, which exposed equipment constraints, a lack of sufficient space for empty container storage, congestion and ultimately widespread logistics delays.
“After decades of neglect, we are finally making the critical investments needed to modernize our ports – helping us to keep up with demand in a way that is environmentally sustainable and brings our distribution process into the 21st Century,” Newsom said in an initial grant announcement.
Each grant focuses on specific improvements at the individual ports. Here's a closer look at the awarded grants, and the projects they support.
