September 26, 2022 – Our thoughts and prayers are with the people in Atlantic Canada as they were hit with Hurricane Fiona over the weekend. Although most transportation and logistics operations are now slowly recovering, we ask for patience for pickups and deliveries in the area as we look to clean up and get back on track.
September 14, 2022 – The industry is currently facing constraints with the influx of containers coming into the Toronto rail terminals. Canaan Transport continues to try our best to assist our customers with their FCL deliveries however we are unable to guarantee any delivery times and or pick up times, due to long lines at the yards. Additional charges may apply for terminal waiting time, terminal storage, yard storages, demurrage and detention. Unfortunately, these items are out of our control. We will do our best to minimize these charges, but regret they must be passed along. If you have any concerns, please let us know.
September 13, 2022 – The four largest U.S. railroads began limiting service Monday in preparation for a potential strike that stands to bring freight rail movement across the country to a halt. Norfolk Southern, Union Pacific, BNSF and CSX all announced they will issue embargoes on certain shipments beginning early this week. CSX, BNSF and Union Pacific all halted traffic of hazardous materials on Monday due to the threat of spontaneous labour action. Norfolk Southern and CSX said the embargoes were necessary to ensure that critical or even toxic freight is not left abandoned. If rail traffic in the US is paralyzed, there will be knock-on effects felt in Canada which will strain an already stretched rail supply chain.
August 18, 2022 – More than 500 port workers at the Port of Liverpoolare set to strike, bringing another one of the UK’s busiest ports ‘grinding to a halt,’ the Unite trade union announced Monday. The strike, the timing and duration of which have not yet been determined, comes after workers at Peel Ports-owned Mersey Docks and Harbour Company (MDHC) voted overwhelmingly in favour of the strike in response to an “inadequate” 7% pay raise offer. This potential strike will have a severe impact on both shipping and road transport in Liverpool and the surrounding areas. This comes after more than 1,900 workers at the Port of Felixstowe, the UK’s busiest container port, are set to strike for eight days later this month after failing to reach a pay deal with Felixstowe Dock and Railway Company, a unit of CK Hutchison Holdings.
August 1, 2022 – The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority said that officials met with representatives from the United Truckers Association (UTA) and Surrey Centre MP Randeep Sarai to hear the UTA’s perspective on operational challenges. “No changes have been made to the Rolling Truck Age Program, which will go into effect on September 15, 2022, as previously announced. As of now, there are 15 trucks that will age out of the program on that date,” a port authority spokesperson said. At this point in time, it appears that any strike action would be rogue in nature.
July 14, 2022- German dockers are set to commence a 48-hour strike on Thursday as wage negotiations with employers reached an impasse. The industrial action by 12,000 port workers will halt operations at the key container hubs of Hamburg, Bremerhaven and Wilhelmshaven, and will be the third and longest period of industrial action in the increasingly bitter wage dispute. If the strike goes ahead, it will have a serious impact on liner networks and worsen the already chronic supply chain congestion at North European container hubs.
June 18, 2022 – CN Rail’s union that represents its Electrical Workers have now gone on strike after talks broke down. At this point in time, there are no significant delays encountered but more news will be issued as the situation develops.
June 16, 2022 – Some 750 Canadian National Railway employees are threatening to walk off the job beginning on Saturday. The company announced Wednesday evening that it received a 72-hour strike notice from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), which represents about 750 employees in Canada. CN says these employees intend to strike on June 18 at 11 am, despite its insistence that it has negotiated in good faith with the union. The company says it has offered to resolve numerous issues, such as wages and benefits, through binding arbitration. "CN remains optimistic that an agreement can be reached without a strike," the statement adds. If an agreement is not reached by Saturday, Canadian National notes it believes it will be able to "safely continue normal operations for as long as necessary."
May 29, 2022 – Container operations at the port of Shanghai are on the rebound. While many districts in the city continue to have reduced restrictions, Chinese officials are reporting that the port has nearly returned to productivity levels before the lockdowns that began at the end of March. The major shipping lines are similarly reporting levels of progress, expecting that further restrictions will be relaxed by the end of the current month.
May 21, 2022 – The cities of Toronto and Ottawa and the surrounding area have been hit by a large thunderstorm, causing power outages and a number of fatalities. Customers are advised that there will be delays in picking up and delivery containers when businesses return after the Victoria Day holiday.