Customer Advisory: Los Angeles / Long Beach Rail Congestion and Potential Labor Disruption

APL Logistics is closely monitoring operational conditions at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, where elevated import volumes, constrained rail capacity and a potential labor disruption may impact cargo movement through the Southern California gateway.

Rail Congestion and Inland Delays

Rail-bound import containers are experiencing significant congestion at the Los Angeles/Long Beach port complex. As of October 26, approximately 35,700 import containers were awaiting on-dock rail service, including more than 10,500 containers that had been on terminal for nine days or longer.

Average rail container dwell across the port complex increased from 4.41 days in March to 7.19 days in September, according to data cited by the Journal of Commerce. Union Pacific and BNSF are also enforcing railcar allocations as they work to manage equipment availability and the backlog.

The congestion follows a period of exceptionally high cargo volumes. Los Angeles handled approximately 1.04 million TEUs in September, while Long Beach processed approximately 997,000 TEUs, contributing to pressure on rail equipment and inland transportation capacity.

Potential Labor Disruption

In addition to the existing rail congestion, approximately 250 watchmen represented by ILWU Local 26 have authorized potential strike action beginning as early as 5:00 p.m. Pacific on Sunday, November 1, if a new labor agreement is not reached. Negotiations remain ongoing, and no strike is currently underway.

Although the dispute involves a relatively small portion of the ILWU workforce at the two ports, the potential operational impact could be significant. According to the Pacific Maritime Association, Local 26 watchmen work at terminals handling approximately 85% of Long Beach cargo and 33% of Los Angeles cargo. If other ILWU members honor Local 26 picket lines, vessel handling, container yard and truck-gate operations at affected terminals could be interrupted.

The watchmen's agreement is separate from the broader West Coast ILWU longshore labor agreement, which remains in effect through 2028.

Customer Considerations

Customers moving cargo through Los Angeles and Long Beach should anticipate the possibility of continued rail delays and additional disruption if labor negotiations do not result in an agreement before November 1.

For time-sensitive or holiday-critical cargo, APL Logistics recommends reviewing transportation plans as early as possible. Depending on shipment requirements and availability, potential mitigation options may include:

• Reviewing alternate gateway options, including Seattle/Tacoma and Vancouver, for certain inland-point intermodal movements.
• Evaluating all-water services to U.S. East or Gulf Coast gateways where appropriate.
• Considering transloading to domestic equipment or over-the-road movements for time-sensitive cargo already in Southern California, recognizing that these alternatives may involve additional cost and capacity constraints.
• Consider APLL’s OceanGuaranteed as an alternative to avoid Interior Point Intermodal (IPI) moves.
• Building additional transit-time buffers into upcoming shipments and making routing decisions as early as possible.

APL Logistics continues to monitor rail conditions and the ongoing labor negotiations. We will provide additional information as material developments occur.

Customers with shipments potentially affected by these conditions are encouraged to contact their APL Logistics representative to discuss shipment status and available routing options.

Sincerely,

APL Logistics

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Sources

• JOC - LA-LB rail container backlog causesgrowing concern among retailers[joc.com]
• FreightWaves: Backlog grows as 35,000 containersawait rail service at LA–Long Beach.
• FreightWaves: Strike threat by port securityworkers at Los Angeles–Long Beach. [freightwaves.com]
• Port of Los Angeles Cargo Operations Dashboard. [portoflosangeles.org]
• C.H. Robinson October 2026 Drayage FreightMarket Update, which separately notes Southern California railcar shortages andlonger import dwell as constraints on inland movement. [chrobinson.com]

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