Georgia Port Authority

[wildman]

::)Ever go into GPA and can not get a lift on or off for over an hour either way? Sure you have. Got a stevedore buddy, said not long ago he worked a Med ship that was docked over in the 800 section. All of the cargo was in the 200 section. Cut their production and we were sitting at stacks with no service. What kind of brain surgons are in charge? A bunch of give a sh**s.

[Jimmie C]

the decision makers at this port must never got their hands dirty in their life. seems they can't figure out any kind of a productive game plan for terminal property that would lead to a smooth operation. one look after entering the gate you can tell the gpa leadership has no common sense in laying out even a simple workable traffic situation. the entire port is a total cluster f**k. that's why the georgia port got the nick name of "port of confusion" in media publications years ago. the port of savannah is a sick joke to everyone involved. i think it's run by the keystone cops.

[wildman]

Right about the keystone cop theory. These strategy genuses were brought from California to show the GPA how to go from a wheel to stack operation. Somehow there is not a one of them that can figure out how to make it efficient. Come on--work a ship at the same time in rows where truckers are trying to unload or reload. Ship first-- screw truck, truck did not ask for this situation. How did the cargo get where it is to start with?
The head hanchos at GPA know most trucks in port are o/o's and we are paid by move. Simple for an o/o, slow moves makes for no production and a hatred for the installed system.
Our truck agents do not have guts to help figure this out. Use to be that they had an organization that had meetings to look out for the trucking participation in the port. Had a recession and poof--every man for themself, screw your competitor let him look out for himself. What happened? A trucking community distrust and the steamship lines and GPA takes advantage of the small operator. GPA remembers more than once the O/O almost shut them down but too many o/o's would not hold out for a couple more days each time for proper adjustments to be implemented. Yes, the screw job continues.

[georgiaredneck]

should have seen the savannah port new years eve day. what a cluster f**k. a good reminder of what it will look like when business returns again to normal. lines stretched outside main gate down highway waiting to get in. total chaos inside as always.

[HardTimeTrucker]

If you want to see a real port operation go to Wando in Charleston, SC. The port authority in Savannah should take pictures along with lessons from them on how to build and run a mostly smooth port operation. As with every terminal operation there could be improvements such as in Charleston but Savannah needs first to fire all management, demolish the existing facility, dig up the gumbo base material used for back fill, and plan a new port facility that doesn't resemble a demolition derby or scrap yard! The port of Savannah is a patchwork of terrible design engineering and construction work from HELL. The only thing they seemed to get right was their fancy office building up front along with their executive parking area. The rest of the port is a disgusting failure on their part to do the job tax payers expect them to oversee!

[Kenny]

For those of you thinking about weekend work last Saturday was another day in Hell at the port of Savannah, GA. Why does anyone even bother coming down there on Saturday? This port refuses to have enough workers on the ground to move the trucks. I won't be back next Saturday for sure. I wasted all day to move out three boxes for dispatch. What is wrong with the people running this d**n port?

[TBrown]

just wait until this bullsh*t from california comes here to the southeast. maybe someone better be thinking about calling another driver meeting soon.



Trucker strike looming at Port of Oakland
Saturday, January 02, 2010

Lisa Amin Gulezian

News Team OAKLAND, CA (KGO)
The New Year has only intensified an old battle between California truckers and environmentalists. Many drivers are upset about regulations that went into effect Friday that are forcing them to pay thousands of dollars to clean up their rigs.


Truckers are now threatening to walk off the job.

Truckers, state air board members, and city staffers all met at city hall for a closed-door meeting Saturday to discuss ways to avert a strike at the Port of Oakland come Monday morning.


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Port of Oakland truckers were hopeful before the meeting. They say they do not want to form a picket line in front of the port on Monday, but will if they have to. It all has to do with a new state clean air deadline that kicked in January 1st, requiring trucks that service the Port of Oakland to be retrofitted with filters at a cost of up to $21,000 apiece.

Those without it will be banned from the port.

"We're screwed. If they stick to this deadline, then that means we can't work as we ordinarily do," driver Ron Dacus told ABC7.

3,000 to 4,000 trucks pass through the port daily, but only 1,600 have the new filters. The state promised to help truckers pay for the retrofit. $22 million in grants were available, but the money ran out. 1,200 truckers' applications were denied in September.

"We know that the truckers need help and we do want to reduce the amount of diesel pollution, so we started looking for other avenues to find funds for them," Lisa Fasano with the Bay Area Air District explained.

Next week, $11 million will be available to all of those denied. It is not enough to pay for the full upgrade which could leave these truckers out of work for up to a month.

"Truckers are not making enough money right now to come up with $21,000. It's hard," said Lakhbir Bhamra with the Norcal Rail and Port Truckers Association. "If it's hard for the state to come up with the money, it's of course, very hard for individuals to come up with $21,000."

Oakland's mayor sent a letter to the Air Resource Board on December 23rd, asking that truckers be granted access to the port while more funding comes through. In the meantime, truckers signed petitions Saturday, formalizing a federal lawsuit against the state and city. They are claiming the government breached their agreement to pay for the retrofit.

According to a port survey, 1,600 trucks are needed daily to move goods efficiently. That is the exact number of trucks that have done the new filtration work. But, trucking associations say that number is way too low. If they do picket, they are sure the truckers who have done the upgrade work will stand by them and not cross the picket line.

[dieseljockey]

You guys can thank the Teamsters union for what is taking place in Oakland along with the rest of the California ports. They started this clean truck campaign to ban the owner/operator trucker from hauling containers so they could unionize strictly company employee drivers after the O/O's were exterminated for good. Talk about back stabbing after promising to help us!

[Paula Hogan]

I hate to tell you I told you so but.....................

Let's make this year a new beginning everyone. I believe drivers at the GA/SC ports are ready for something new.

Paula

[sidekick]

A dozen drivers were talking about this situation while waiting at the trouble booth the other day. Everyone agreed it's about time to call another Savannah meeting. This screwed up port is not going to get any better as everyone witnessed over the holidays.

[jason]

it's cold as a witch's tit this morn. truck didn't want to crank but finally did. i am headed to the sorry port for more abuse. i must like punishment. call a meeting. i am sure many will come listen. we are all tired of this daily crap in sugar town.

[DOWNTIME]

Jan 1, 2010 13:45:39 GMT -5 @georgiaredneck said:

should have seen the savannah port new years eve day. what a cluster f**k. a good reminder of what it will look like when business returns again to normal. lines stretched outside main gate down highway waiting to get in. total chaos inside as always.

Hold that thought driver. I predict by this summer we'll be backed out to the traffic light at hwy21 waiting on their sorry a$$e$ at the gate.

[wildman]

Downtime is right, the GPA guys can blame anyone they want, but they are not full staffing the ILA checkers at Gate 3, which are way more non-productive than Gate 4. Do not know why no one can figure out the chief checker at Gate 3 is so stupid he may sh#t his pants before he figures out where to do the deed. Got the job because of seniority, that part sucks as far as ILA descretion--the high cards know his elevator never makes the top floor. Crap, if he was the janitor at a bank that long--would that qualify him to be the President of the joint? The machines at Gate 3 are constantly out of paper. He has checkers there that seem to be as*hole buddies led by none other than Arthur "Pudgie" Rudd an ex-truckdriver that treats you like you just pooped on him. The ILA checkers union should clean up that part. Gate 4, lot more congested moves a lot quicker. Why the chief checker? Better morale because of leadership at Gate 4?
Then inside the port--the brainsurgeons that can not lay or follow a game play. Did all this to make a stack operation a success and for some reason does not know where to put the equipment where necessary to get it in or out with decent efficency. Come on GPA, this computer operation is what is supposed to keep you organized--know what I mean--tells you where you put it and where you get it from. Now you guys need to be able to read the game plan? Nobody qualified in the organization it appears. Need a quarterback.
Complain to your local truck agent, they agree it is a cluster f*ck and do not know what to do. That is bulls*hit, their organizing is a large key to have GPA figure out the problems. No production for you, p*ss poor paycheck for you--not to mention bad attitudes, and longer office hours for the agents waiting for work to be completed so that office staff can complete road dispatch and get home at a decent hour. A lot more facts left out.

[wildman]

I would like to amend part of what I just posted. Sorry I criticized the ILA at Gate 3 the way I did. What I mean is the Chief checker no matter his time, is no personnel manager, nor is the Chief that replaces him when he marks off. Just can not understand, why they can not put a person at the gate that will assume and take a leadership at the gate. Both these guys have been in the ILA for a long time, but at best are among the worst checkers when they actually worked the lanes themselves. I do know a lot of checkers with lower cards prefer not to be at Gate 3 because of a lack of leadership and crappy morale due to a sort of inside "buddy-buddy" relationship that has developed over there.

[rugratII]

While truckers here as final result get the screwing over this same BS everyday in Savannah.
I run Charleston - Savannah weekly. How can there be such a difference between Wando terminal and this stupid port here? I hope if they build this new port in Jasper county, SC it'll not be run same way like the Sav port. If so that new port will become another bigger mess than we have here now.

[Curtis]

lol with Hardeeville port if the same individuals are involved that manage the Savannah port. I hear Doug Marchund the former GPA president has interest in that project as a consultant for Georgia. What a laugh. He should go to Benton, AR to train as Wally World sales consultant in China. This guy has no business in any port operation matters. His expertise is salesman not operating any kind of efficient port terminal.

[oboy@ivorva]

It sounds like your port in Savannah may be more of a pain in the a** than up here in Virginia

[porttalk]

"GOD BLESS" every can hauler if the new Jasper, SC port is anything like in Savannah. I don't think you can even call the GPA run Garden City terminal a real port. It's operated more like a redneck carnival by those idiots who call themselves the port authority.

[truckerusa]

I also would much rather pull out of Charleston's Wando terminal. The Port of Savannah wins top prize in my book for total terminal chaos immediately upon entering the main gates. If anyone dispatches you to Savannah to pick up a box be prepared for wasted time beyond belief while attempting to perform each simple task.

[wildman]

Wando got their chassis pool up to snuff, you are assigned a preinspected chassis and most of the time the mechanic has it right. GPA, everyman for himself to select from junk.
Wando checkers are port employees that do their job.
GPA checkers are union and too high a percentage could care less, attitude is job secure.
Marchant is/was good salesman for GPA. Brought a California operations team with him from California headed by HIS operations manager. Transformed port to stack operation. The only thing is that this operations team do not know how to make it function, they have the tools--computers and equipment-- just not the knowledge, good sense or know-how to use it. Wasted time for the truck operator sucks. Poor service from GPA themselves sucks. My truck agent and I am sure is just like yours, general rule, does not care about you only their profit--nice houses, fancy cars, etc. I know my agent does not know how to deal for the operators with either GPA or the steamship lines on our behalf, which would be a large benefit to their profit.

[wildman]

Is GPA thingyy, figures this site gives them no reason to care about o/o problems. You know someone within GPA monitors this site. Gave one of them the site address myself, a long time ago. They must think we are zits--squeeze it and it will go away.

[wildman]

My typing is bad from above post--Is GPA thinking we are all complete idiots, and there is no reason to care about o/o problems. As stated gave a GPA operations person this site a long time ago and am sure one of the ops perple monitor this site--or do they? Hell , appears we are no threat.

[cheapdate]

if you guys started posting this web page all over inside the port they would change mind. i have seen this posted only twice unless someone takes it down which is good possibility knowing management here at port. in meantime call for anothe meeting soon. i think more are ready now with new year. look at faces of drivers now at gpa. most like zombies.it's depressing.

[Retread]

So what's new guys? What can we do now that everyone in the past hasn't already tried before? The Savannah port is worse now than when freight was booming. This has always been a pathetic excuse for a port since I started working local drays back eight years ago. I'm up for anything new if someone has a plan.

[BINGO]

It's gonna take trucker power to cure this port situation in Savannah