This formal declaration signals that trouble in one form or another has encumbered some person or agency. The implications are that adverse circumstances brought about by outside forces require the aggrieved party to plead for understanding, assistance and exemption from responsibility or legal liability. Terminal Systems, Inc., the operators of Deltaport in Vancouver have just been forced to declare “Force Majeure” because of a backlog of more than 5,000 containers. Phrases such as, “greater than average ship discharges” and “a higher than average amount of containers” are wordy ways of admitting that the terminal’s primitive methods of operation have spawned congestion. And that’s what it is … purely and simply … congestion. But this mess will take months and months to clear up, and by that time the effects of the projected increase in volume for 2005 will be felt.

This website, and our frequent commentaries, have stressed the many warnings issued by maritime authorities with respect to the impending gridlock in our intermodal transportation system. Each of these officials have deliberately appealed to every participant in every link of the supply chain to take heed and to come together in a joint effort to avert this expected disaster. Yes. Disaster. Maybe “catastrophe” would be more accurate. The folks in Vancouver could describe it exactly, no doubt. Vancouver saw an 8% increase in containers in 2004, reaching the 600,000 TEU mark, and with a projected tripling of throughput by the year 2020, 2005 will see at least an 8% increase over 2004’s unmanageable growth. What’s worse than “catastrophe”? Armageddon, maybe?

TSI will be forced to “divert”, intentionally, that 2005 increase because Vancouver will never find a way to accommodate the burden. If it isn’t obvious to everyone by now, it soon will be. Where will the diverted vessels go? To LA-Long Beach, maybe? Forget it. According to the latest admission, 115 ships were diverted from that complex during the year end peak season. And speaking of the turmoil in LA-Long Beach, how are the authorities in that overwhelmed basin proposing to handle the 10 to12% increase projected for their terminals in 2005?

“Force Majeure”, that’s it! … and let the devil take the hindmost, as the oldtimers used to say. No, that won’t happen. The heady maritime authorities often quoted in these commentaries will eventually be directed to this website and will do what’s right. Either that, or the U.S. Department of Transportation will see the need for an intermodal supply chain commissioner of some sort … and that wouldn’t be right. There are several hundred associations looking to the well-being and profitability of their members, but there is no all-embracing intermodal supply chain association as yet. This website would like to go on record as suggesting the formation of just such an association. Consisting of experienced and capable authorities, such an alliance would quickly promote the means that would best serve the interests of all, and especially the interests of the most neglected segment … the very last link in the chain … the American consumer. Would sacrifices be required of anyone along the line? None whatever. The patented system promoted by this website would come to the attention of this brainstorming group, and in order to avoid a domino-like intermodal collapse, with Vancouver as the starting point, our recommendations would be adopted. More profit would be generated all along the chain, as a matter of fact. Take it to the bank.