Posted on July 17, 2024
NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. – Officials with the South Carolina Ports Authority are always monitoring traffic volume to determine what’s working.
New data reveals that in fiscal year 2024, the ports saw a total final period container volume of more than $1.3 million.
That’s actually down 3.5% from 2023 but port leaders say numbers fluctuate a bit and these are strong volumes that mean they need things like new ways to quickly ship containers out across the southeast. In fact, the state’s inland ports of Greer and Dillon Counties, serviced by train shipments, are seeing record-breaking volumes come through their stations so far this year.
June was the first month this year to outperform the prior two fiscal years. Leaders also used Tuesday’s board meeting g to approve more than $600,000 in engineering work at the naval intermodal facility site in North Charleston. That train station will soon be able to help move the volume of shipments out of the port faster. Although port records show trucks spend well under an average of 45 minutes going through facilities, to their approval.
Finally, cruises broke a prior record with 295,624 passengers so far this year. This year is the last that Charleston will see the Carnival Sunshine cruise ship consistently dock downtown since its lease was not renewed and Union Pier is being redeveloped.
The ports plan to expand more on these numbers and what they mean going forward in their official annual State of the Ports address in October.
