Green Port Portal - Swift Transportation Inc., and Knight Transportation Submit Letters to the Port of Los Angeles

Swift Transportation Inc., and Knight Transportation Submit Letters to the Port of Los Angeles

The Port of Los Angeles has received letters of intent from Swift Transportation, Inc., and Knight Transportation (NYSE: KNX), two major national motor carriers that plan to become port drayage concessionaires under the Port of Los Angeles Clean Truck Program (CTP).

Both Phoenix, Ariz.-based companies plan to begin drayage operations at the Port in October. While the number of trucks they will operate in the market is still to be determined, Port officials expect that, collectively, their pool of trucks will exceed 2,000. From the outset, these trucks will meet USEPA 2007 diesel emissions standards using a mix of clean diesel and LNG trucks.

“The Board wants to congratulate Port staff on their extensive outreach effort, which is now resulting in a critical mass of program participation, including these two leading national carriers,” said Los Angeles Harbor Commission President S. David Freeman.

“We are pleased to welcome the Swift and Knight clean fleets into our growing pool of Port of Los Angeles trucking concessionaires,” said Executive Director Geraldine Knatz, Ph.D. “The entrance of these two innovative national carriers into drayage service at our Port is the culmination of months of discussion between our team and the motor carrier community regarding our program and the opportunities it can provide to trucking companies that are operationally efficient and environmentally responsible.”

To date, the Port has received concession applications from approximately 20 other licensed motor carriers of various sizes that collectively represent more than 1,100 trucks. With the addition of Knight and Swift, Port officials urge other motor carriers to take action to ensure that they can still operate in the Port after the October 1, 2008, start date of the Clean Truck Program.

Unless the Court enters a preliminary injunction, all October 1 Clean Truck Program deadlines remain applicable. In any event, the ATA lawsuit does not challenge the October 1 start date of the truck ban schedule and the $35 Clean Truck Fee per loaded TEU on any truck entering a terminal in the ports with an engine model year between 1989 and 2006. The fee will be collected from the Beneficial Cargo Owner (BCO) by the terminal operator.