In a bid to enhance safety of up to 3000 ‘over-the-road’ (OTR) truck drivers at APM Terminals (APMT’s) Pier 400 facility at the Port of Los Angeles, the terminal operator has introduced a new safety initiative which has revised the procedures and layout within the yard.
The goal of the programme is to reduce the risk of accident or injury to outside truck drivers by keeping drivers inside of their truck cabs at all times within the terminal.
APMT aims to reduce the risk of accidents in specifically designated and protected areas where the drivers may exit their cabs to lock the pins which hold containers onto container chasses.
Steven Trombley, Managing Director at APMT’s Pier 400 Los Angeles Terminal, said: “Our intention is to continue to improve safety performance by increasing the separation between people and machines.
“Put simply: keep drivers in their truck cabs while inside the terminal, or provide them additional safeguards if this is unavoidable.”
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The steps taken to implement the new terminal safety procedures include the creation of designated areas for drivers to lock (after pick-up) or unlock (prior to delivery) the pins on chasses.
A redesigned chasses exchange area has been implemented to improve safety during the pick-up and drop-off of empty container chasses.
In order to resolve gate transaction problems a redesigned area for truck driver parking was also introduced at the terminal.