The volume of cargo piling up at Hai Phong Port has soared in recent months, following the Ministry of Transport's efforts to regulate truck-loading procedures, as of April 1.

Statistics released by the Hai Phong Customs Department showed that some 8,000 containers were stuck at the northern port at the end of July compared with only 4,600 units at the end of last year.

The heavy traffic of inbound and outbound container cargo put pressure on the port, while enterprises also suffered losses, a representative from Hai Phong Port said.

The loading and unloading of cargo at ports has slowed dramatically since control over loading procedures was tightened from April 1. Under the new regulation, containers must be divided into smaller parts for transport to avoid overloading.

There is also a shortage of vehicles that are capable of transporting a whole cargo container.

The Hai Phong People's Committee on July 30 established a group charged with tackling the stockpile of cargo containers at the port.

The large stockpile had also raised concern amongst other ports in the country.

According to Le Tuan Anh, Deputy Director of Sai Gon New Port, as quoted by Tin Tuc newspaper, weighing stations should be placed at reasonable intervals to prevent traffic congestion during the inspection of vehicular weights.

On the issue of out-of-gauge cargo, which currently requires a special shipping licence, an expert noted that these products should not be considered in terms of overloading.

He added that transparency should be ensured in the granting of licences for shipping out-of-gauge cargo to ease the burden on enterprises.

VNA/VNN