After a federal court decision upholding the controversial portion of Clean Truck Program, officials at the Port of Los Angeles have adjusted the program’s implementation schedule, giving trucking companies a break.
The companies must still have a pool of all-employee drivers by Dec. 31, 2013, but an interim deadline has been relaxed. Previously under the program, 66 percent of a carrier’s drivers had to be employees by the end of this year. Now, only 20 percent must be employed by the end of next year and 66 percent by the end of 2012.
“The point is to give the trucking companies time to implement these procedures and the port time to implement measures to monitor them,” said port spokesman Phillip Sanfield.
The Los Angeles Harbor Commission took the recent action due to lengthy court proceedings stemming from a lawsuit filed in 2008 by American Trucking Associations challenging portions of the program.
The program requires all big rigs doing business in the port to meet 2007 federal emissions standards by 2012, effectively banning older higher-polluting trucks. It also requires all drivers to be employed by carriers that have concession agreements with the port, the main issue in the ATA’s lawsuit.
Los Angeles District Court Judge Christina Snyder enjoined the port from enforcing its ban of independent truckers in April 2009 while considering the case, but then lifted the order Aug. 26 when she ruled against the ATA, allowing the full program to go forward.
Opponents have filed an appeal, and at least one trucking company owner wasn’t impressed by the relaxation of the deadlines for employee drivers.
“We’re still going to fight,” vowed Ron Guss, president of Pico Rivera-based Intermodal West Inc., which operates 55 trucks. “Companies are not just going to the employee model. Obviously they’ll wait for the appeal and not do anything until that plays out.”
Trading Shots
The battle over an iconic World War II battleship is heating up, with Los Angeles and competing locations trading shots over the bow.
Last week, a non-profit based in Vallejo fired off a press release urging that the USS Iowa be berthed at Mare Island, a former naval installation some 35 miles north of San Francisco and about 10 miles from where the ship is kept now.
“The USS Iowa at Mare Island will be awe-inspiring,” said Bill Stephens, director of Historic Ships Memorial at Pacific Square, which has been attempting to acquire the vessel for years. “The magnificent site, pier-side amenities and the rich historic environment will provide a dignified and singular home for this magnificent ship.”
The PR assault came just days after the Port of Los Angeles hired Aecom, an L.A.-based engineering and consulting firm, to explore the feasibility of bringing the ship to Southern California as a tourist attraction.
“We are very confident, given the demographics of L.A., that a project of this magnitude would be the most successful naval warship museum in the world,” said Robert Kent, director of Pacific Battleship Center, a San Pedro-based counterpart of Stephens’ group.
Kent has recently garnered the support of the Los Angeles City Council.
A port spokesman said he expects Aecom to complete its $100,000 feasibility study by early November, after which the U.S. Navy will decide on the ship’s disposition.
Streetcar Spirit
The backers of a plan to bring streetcars back to downtown Los Angeles said a recent fundraiser at L.A. Live brought in about $200,000 – more than double their goal.
The Sept. 30 event was co-hosted by Los Angeles City Councilman Jose Huizar; billionaire philanthropist Eli Broad; shopping mall magnate Rick Caruso; and Tim Leiweke, chief executive of AEG and boss of L.A. Live.
“We were very encouraged,” said Dennis Allen, executive director of Los Angeles Streetcar Inc., a non-profit organization spearheading the street car project. “We’re fortunate to have some good support.”
The profit realized by the fundraiser, Allen said, will go toward defraying the non-profit’s operating costs. So far, only about one-tenth of the project’s estimated $100 million price tag has actually been pledged, in the form of a Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency grant.
an application for $25 million from the Federal Transportation Agency was recently turned down, but the organization expects to apply for the money again next year.
Allen said the recent show of financial support should help in gaining federal funds.
Tariff Break
The Los Angeles Harbor Commission has officially approved a plan making the Port of Los Angeles the world’s first to offer reduced tariffs for zero-emission vehicles.
The 15 percent reduction for electric vehicles imported through the San Pedro port was created as a way of encouraging BYD Auto Co. Ltd., China’s fourth-largest automaker, to open its North American headquarters in downtown Los Angeles. That happened in April, clearing the way for adoption of the Zero Emission Vehicle Tariff Measure applying to all manufacturers.
The measure will take effect after final approval by the Los Angeles City Council, expected within 30 days.
Staff reporter David Haldane can be reached at [email protected] or at 323-549-5225, ext. 225.
