Long lines as Seattle port reopens after 3-day weekend
Feb 17, 2015, 8:52 AM | Updated: 10:17 am
Freight trucks lined up outside the Port of Seattle Tuesday, waiting to deliver cargo after a three-day shutdown. (Photo by KING 5/Rebecca Perry via Twitter)
(Photo by KING 5/Rebecca Perry via Twitter)
Impacts of the three-day shutdown at the Port of Seattle quickly showed Tuesday morning as freight trucks lined up to make deliveries.
Trucks were backed up along Marginal Way as drivers waited to enter the port.
Trucks began lining up early in the morning, KING 5’s Rebecca Perry reported.
The port will work with the city to try to alleviate any impacts to traffic that arise throughout the day, said Port of Seattle spokesman Peter McGraw.
“We’re going to be working to resolve any traffic issues,” he said.
The port was shut down for President’s Day weekend because companies didn’t want to pay union workers holiday wages.
The ongoing labor dispute between the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and Pacific Maritime Association began in May.
The move broadened a partial lockout that began in January, when the maritime association stopped calling night crews to load and unload ships. Instead, smaller crews would focus on moving onto trucks and trains containers sitting on cargo-choked dockside yards.
In recent weeks, their disagreements at the bargaining table have led to historically debilitating problems moving cargo through 29 seaports from Southern California to Seattle.
The Port of Seattle is among several West Coast ports that have suffered work slowdowns.
