Transnet has said that Cape Town Container Terminal (CTCT) and the port itself are “piloting a truck booking system where transporters will be allowed access only 30 minutes before their confirmed slot at the terminal”.
This is in response to a question from Freight News regarding whether the ports proprietor of the state-owned company (SOC) plans to stop admitting trucks without pre-allocated time slots into the port precinct.
Transporters maintain that if Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) prevented trucks without slots from entering the port, congestion between the outer perimeter and CTCT could be avoided, ultimately speeding up the ability of harbour carriers to fetch boxes.
Transnet said: “Upon arrival at the entrance gates, transporters will be required to have the truck registration number and terminal booking verified by security personnel for a valid booking before the trucks are allowed access.”
The SOC added that this system would continue until full implementation in March.
What is not clear, though, is what “entrance gates” Transnet is referring to – the outer entrance or the entrance to CTCT.
The question sent to Transnet made it clear that transporters felt TNPA shouldn’t allow trucks without slots into the port at all, let alone possibly granting non-compliant transporters access to CTCT, which is run by Transnet Port Terminals (TPT).
Derick Ongansie, who chairs the SA Transporters Alliance (Sata), has said that the truck booking system as it stands has led to a free-for-all situation at the port, forcing long-standing operators out of business because of land-side congestion at the port.
In a meeting with TPT executives last October, a recorded segment of the meeting features a transporter blaming port officials for creating a situation where as many as 90 trucks enter the precinct, making it very hard for compliant carriers to access awarded slots in time.
Ongansie said although truck booking has been a problem for several years, TPT refused to accept that the Navis system was flawed, arguing that it was necessary to control traffic.
TPT said: “Truck booking systems the world over are designed to manage truck arrivals and create fluidity and predictability on the land-side so that trucks do not call at the same time.
“They help terminals plan in line with the equipment they have available.
“The truck booking system has undergone numerous adjustments and changes over the last four years, as a result of beneficial collaborations with transporters nationwide.
“TPT remains willing to engage further on the matter, with standing weekly and monthly meetings in place.”
The operator recorded in the meeting said he didn’t know why he bothered attending the meetings because nothing had improved, and carriers still faced the kind of congestion that put companies out of business.
