ContainerCast

​In this ContainerCast, Mat Kaplan speaks with Tom O'Brien about an important part of international trade that is often overlooked--the last mile, or the deliveries to stores and homes. We think a lot about the impacts of ocean vessels and diesel emissions but there are impacts on the urban environment as well, through delivery trucks and vans. This area of concern is called urban freight, and it's starting to mean something to people across the board.

​In this ContainerCast, Mat Kaplan talks to Tom O'Brien about the impact of goods that come to the U.S. from Canada and Mexico on the U.S. economy.

​In this ContainerCast, Mat Kaplan speaks to Tom O'Brien about the elimination of the Safe Accountable Flexible Efficient Transporatation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users and its replacement with MAP 21, Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century, and what this means for the future of goods movement.

​In this ContainerCast, Mat Kaplan talks to Tom O'Brien about his trip to the port of Antwerp, which is a critical part of the supply chain that can teach us more about our own ports in Long Beach and Los Angeles. Antwerp is also the second largest petroleum refining port complex in the world after Houston.

An economic downturn doesn't diminish the value of increased efficiency at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Both need additional container storage space, but land is in short supply. So the Ports and several major carriers are experimenting with new ways to manage the tens of thousands of chassis that move those containers across the nation. For example, industry leader Maersk is leasing chassis to truckers, giving them much greater flexibility. Dr. O'Brien tells us the plan seems to be working.

These sometimes strange bedfellows once again found mutually-beneficial common ground at October's National Urban Freight Conference in Long Beach. Dr. O'Brien recaps highlights of the METRANS sponsored event, and tells us why it might have been better called an INTERNATIONAL conference. A conference report and presentations are available at http://www.metrans.org/nuf/2011/.

It's official. California has the first statewide cap-and-trade program in the US. Can market-driven policies like this substantially reduce carbon emissions? Both business interests and environmentalists have reservations. Dr. O'Brien takes us through the complex web of legislation and regulation, and warns that there is more to come, including the Sustainable Communities Strategy.

The National Urban Freight Conference has returned to Southern California. Our regular guest, Dr. Thomas O’Brien, is a major force behind this gathering of goods movement industry professionals and the researchers who study their industry. Tom explains the value of this meeting of the minds to host Mat Kaplan.

Geraldine Knatz, Executive Director of the Port of Los Angeles, talks with Mat Kaplan about the challenges and joys of running the busiest container port in the United States. Topics include the vital role of constant infrastructure improvements, environmental advances, and the outlook for international trade. We also hear how Dr. Knatz rose from environmental scientist at POLA to becoming its first ever female Executive Director.

Tom O'Brien and Mat Kaplan review the three-part webinar series “Cargo and Jobs: Still Ours to Lose?” They break down some of the bigger issues that were raised by the participants, including just how competitive a trade gateway Southern California is.

Mat Kaplan and Tom O'Brien discuss a conference that brought together people with a unique interest in gateway issues and port issues along the west coast of North America. The purpose of the conference was to figure out what was similar about west coast gateway regions. But a lot of the discussion focused on how we compete for the same business and how some of us are in a better position to get that business than others.

Dr. Thomas O'Brien joins host Mat Kaplan for a fascinating conversation about efforts to reduce slavery and human trafficking, including the recent passage of California's Supply Chain Transparency Act.

In this episode of ContainerCast, Mat Kaplan and Tom O’Brien review the 2010 elections and consider what they mean for the trade and transportation community.

When Senator Lowenthal recently introduced legislation calling for a national freight policy, he joined a line of distinguished politicians who had done the same thing. Mat Kaplan and Tom O’Brien discuss whether or not he is likely to have any more success than they did.

In this ContainerCast, Mat Kaplan talks to Tom O’Brien about the constant tension on the docks over the use of technology and what it means for labor negotiations.

Host Mat Kaplan welcomes Robert Thornburgh, chairman and past president of the Los Angeles Transportation Club. The LATC has served its members, the goods movement industry and the community for more than 85 years. It also provides generous support for CSULB and CITT programs.

In this Container Cast, Mat Kaplan talks with Tom O'Brien about some of the other kinds of cargo, apart from containerized trade, moving through the Ports of LA and Long Beach.

Mat Kaplan and Tom O'Brien consider some of the longer term trends - like those that started in 800 A.D. - affecting globalized trade.

Mat Kaplan and Tom O’Brien look at the ways in which private industry has adopted environmental measures. From manufacturing to transport, companies have decided that a green supply chain means more green for the bottom line.

In this ContainerCast, Mat Kaplan talks to CITT’s Tom O’Brien about what drives innovation at west coast ports and how competitors sometimes work together to develop and test new technologies as well as new policy measures.

In this ContainerCast, Mat Kaplan and CITT’s Director of Research Thomas O’Brien discuss how difficult it is to reach consensus on the future of goods movement and the ways to solve the trade-related challenges. Some recent Long Beach conferences attempt to bridge the divide.

In this ContainerCast, Mat Kaplan and Tom O’Brien discuss the legacy of containerization and the potential for a new revolution in U.S. trade as a result of changes in the way the industry handles chassis.

In this Container Cast, CITT’s Director of Research, Tom O’Brien, and Mat Kaplan talk about what happens to international trade after an economic recovery. Will more consumer confidence mean the return of 2006-level trade volumes to our local ports? Much of that depends on what happens in Asia and China, as Tom and Mat discuss.

How do we clean up the trucks serving the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles with the minimum in policy changes and damage to trade? That topic will be discussed in this episode of ContainerCast with Cameron Roberts.

In this ContainerCast, CITT's Director of Research Tom O'Brien and Mat Kaplan discuss the impact of the California budget crisis and the reauthorization of the federal surface transportation bill on trade-related infrastructure projects. This includes the complex nature of transportation policy amking and financing in the U.S. and the number of different agencies involved.

In this ContainerCast, Mat Kaplan and Thomas O’Brien, CITT’s Director of Research, discuss what drives the development and adoption of innovation in trade gateways. For the Southern California trade gateway, competition between the ports of LA and Long Beach has helped; and so has the large number of researchers at local universities.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of CITT's State of the Trade and Transportation Industry Town Hall meeting. This ContainerCast considers the role that the Town Hall has played in bringing the university and industry together and providing a forum for problem solving.

The industry is once again in crisis mode. A weak economy and a decline in cargo volumes have affected major trade gateways. In this Container Cast, we discuss what this means for a local economy dependent on trade and transportation activity.

In this ContainerCast, we discuss the many front lines where the battles over trade are fought, and fault lines all over the world that can trigger economic disruptions. This is a sobering reminder that as a community dependent on trade for our livelihood, we are inextricably linked to the rest of the world.

This ContainerCast discusses west coast container volumes in light of current economic conditions and considers what happens after the recovery.

A year ago at this time, I attempted to make my best predictions about the key issues which would be confronting the goods movement industry in 2008. This is my own year-end report card. In general, I got the issues right but the emphasis wrong. At the end of 2007, the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach were looking at a down year in terms of imports. Exports, however, were a bright spot; and there was some hope that a good Christmas season would help the industry end the year on a positive note.

In this ContainerCast, the focus is on the city of Carson and similar cities near major port complexes and the role they play when it comes to global trade and transportation issues.

This ContainerCast talks about the launching of the Clean Truck Program and the phase-in of a series of related measures designed to support the Program, including the use of RFID. It also talks about the evolution of regulatory measures surrounding port operations.

In this ContainerCast, there's general agreement on what needs to be done to get freight related projects moving. The state has been involved in laying those out along with the independent parties like the ports. We generally know what these projects cost, but it's what needs to be done to get the project actually implemented that's proving difficult.

In this ContainerCast, the discussion turns to the state of the environment and the state of environmental impact reporting at our ports.

In this ContainerCast, the focus is on World Trade Week, reminding us that while we're often focused on the localized impacts of trade and transportation activities, much of those activities are in response to actions that occur in our state capitals and our nation's capital.

In this ContainerCast, air cargo is subsidizing your flight. The ability to use space in passenger planes to transport air cargo benefits the air cargo industry as well.

In this ContainerCast, the focus is on the attention (or lack of it) that trade and transportation issues are receiving in the presidential race.