Singapore will allow for night movement of line-towed container barges to and from Pasir Panjang Terminal, following a four-month trial, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said in a statement on Wednesday.
The latest measure came after a period of longer waiting times for vessels for container berths earlier in May and June, when congestion at Singapore, the world’s second-largest container port, hit its worst since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Night movement was previously allowed only at the Brani and Keppel Terminals, where navigational traffic is less complex than around Pasir Panjang.
This measure aims to improve connectivity with regional ports, enhance port efficiency, reduce the time container and feeder vessels spend at berth and the need for containers to be transported between land terminals, MPA said.
Additional safety measures will also be implemented, including mandatory pilotage for the barges, restrictions on the length of towing lines and close monitoring of barge movements by MPA’s vessel traffic management system, it said.
Each line-towed barge can carry an average of 300 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs).
Singapore port handled 23.82 million TEUs of containers from January to July this year, up 6.1% from the same period last year.
The average wait time for container berths at the port has been reduced to less than one day in July, after several measures were introduced, MPA said.
These included adding new berths at Tuas port, reactivating berths and yard spaces at Keppel, increasing manpower and collaborating with liners in scheduling operations.
