Union Pacific taking cargo around-the-clock near L.A. ports

Union Pacific Corp. has begun receiving trucks around-the-clock at its freight facility near the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, extending operating time by about 20 hours a week to help ease cargo congestion. 

The railroad previously had closed gates to trucks for 10 hours early Sunday mornings and for 10 hours on Sunday afternoons into early Monday because typically volume is low at those times. Now trucks can bring maritime containers at any time to its rail yard, which is only a few miles from both ports. 

Union Pacific’s operations to build trains at that facility have always run 24 hours a day, seven days a week, even if the gates to receive trucks were closed for part of the weekend, spokesperson Kristen South said Tuesday. The receiving gates were opened around-the-clock on Oct. 17, South said. 

The railroad’s move comes after the Port of Los Angeles moved to 24-hour operations at the urging of the Biden administration. In a White House meeting last week, executives from WalMart Inc., FedEx Corp. and other companies central to the supply chain pledged to expand operations to clear a nationwide cargo logjam.

Union Pacific shares were little changed, closing at $225.76.