Crisis looms as e-commerce giants shift to sea cargo

THE influx of e-commerce behemoths Shein, Temu and Amazon is about to create a freight crisis in South Africa as their shift from air to sea cargo threatens to overwhelm the already buckling Durban-Gauteng corridor.

- NICOLA MAWSON

As volumes scale, these giants will switch from air freight in favour of container shipping, putting additional pressure on a route where rail carries a dismal 14% of cargo - nowhere near the National Development Plan's 50% target.

The rising tide of imported cars adds to the looming crunch.

The Port of Gauteng, a R50 billion inland port, could be a solution.

Positioned at the junction of the Container Rail Corridor and the N3, N12 and N17 highways, the facility will feature two 2.2km flat rail alignments, a world-class car terminal and container rail terminal designed for rapid, high-volume throughput.

The project targets 50000 permanent jobs and seamless train-to-truck transfers using performance-based standards (PBS) vehicles - long truck-trailer combinations carrying two containers that could slash truck movements by 40%.