Port of Virginia November cargo falls without diverted traffic cargo

Published December 17, 2013 by Jessica Sabbath

For all of 2013, traffic is expected to be up 6 percent.

The Port of Virginia saw a decline in container traffic in November as it couldn’t match the bump it received last year from port traffic diverted  during Hurricane Sandy.

Container traffic in November fell 2.9 percent from last year to 192,918 TEUs, or 20-foot equivalent units. About 7 percent of last year’s container traffic was diverted from the Port of New York/New Jersey because of Hurricane Sandy.

“The Sandy diversions gave us great numbers last November,” said Rodney Oliver, interim director of the Port of Virginia. “But if you back out the diverted cargo from last November's totals, this November would have been ahead of last year by 4.5 percent.”

November marked the first month in 2013 during which the port handled less container traffic than it did the same month the prior year.

For the first 11 months of 2013, the port has handled 2.04 million TEUs, up 6 percent over the same period in 2012.

The port’s rail volume is 12.8 percent ahead of last year on a year-to-date basis.