berths handled only 154,000 tons during 1967.52 The total domestic offshore traffic moving through the facility at Ponce, therefore, was relatively low.

4. Port of Mayagüez

a. Traffic and Commerce

Mayagüez Bay, an open roadstead located at about the center of the west coast of Puerto Rico (chart VI-1), is a good harbor through which there are several channels of 30 feet or more. The facilities at this port were used by some 250 American vessels during the year ending June 30, 1967. The tonnage moving through Mayagüez amounted to about 241,162 short tons, a 7 percent decline over the 258,764 tons of the previous fiscal year. This reduction in traffic was due primarily to the tremination of Alcoa's service to and from Mayagüez. In contrast, San Juan's traffic was some 2.8 million short tons during the same period.

b. Berthing Facilities

Chart VI-6 illustrates the location of the Mayagüez terminal, which is owned and operated by the Commonwealth's Ports Authority and provides berthing facilities for two large oceangoing vessels. The marginal berth, which is 1,130 feet long, includes six transit sheds providing 117,150 square feet of useable space. This is the only deep-water dry cargo facility available at this port.

Of the 240,000 short tons of dry cargo handled through Mayagüez in 1967, 113,000 tons were transported by common carriers including Lykes, GPRL, Sea-Land, and Seatrain. In that year, Lykes Bros. called on a biweekly schedule from Gulf ports (Lake Charles, La., and Galveston, and Port Arthur, Tex.) and offloaded 25,634 tons of breakbulk cargo including rice, flour, grease, beans, onions, animal feed, and lard. It loaded only 16 tons of canned tuna, shoes, and other cargo for the return haul to Houston, Tex. GPRL, which called biweekly, also from Gulf ports, offloaded 15,480 tons of breakbulk general cargo including foods and raw materials, and loaded 14,034 tons of canned tuna for the return haul. Sea-Land called at Mayagüez approximately once a month in 1967 and handled approximately 57,000 tons of cargo at this facility. In 1967, AUT called direct about five to six times offloading approximately 1,400 tons of cargo, primarily automobiles. The foreign ships calling at Mayagüez include the K Line, which hauls lumber from British Columbia

52 Puerto Rico Ports Authority.

This terminal is owned and operated by the Puerto Rico Ports Authority.

on four to five visits per year, and Nieves Hermanos which calls approximately three to four times per year with lumber from Honduras.

As in the case of Ponce, Sea-Land serves Mayagüez also by substituted overland service from San Juan (about 54,000 tons in 1967) and maintains a marshalling yard adjacent to the pier for a container pool. Seatrain serves the port of Mayagüez only by substituted land service from San Juan. These carriers maintain a truck terminal adjacent to the pier.

C. WAREHOUSING FACILITIES IN PUERTO RICO

1. General

As previously indicated, one of the most important factors in an efficient system of transport in the Puerto Rican trade is the adequacy of warehousing facilities for the storage of cargoes. The total useable private and public warehouse space in San Juan, the center of

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population, traffic, and economic activity, is approximately 4.5 million square feet. Considering the large volume of traffic now moving to and from this port (2.8 million short tons of dry cargo in 1967) and the growth projected to 1975 (chart II-2), this amount of warehouse space appears wholly inadequate to handle the dry cargo storage requirements of the Port of San Juan efficiently. Evidence indicates that common carriers berthing at Puerto Nuevo, Isla Grande, and Old San Juan need additional warehousing and transit shed facilities to handle cargo which is not picked up during the free time allotted.

2. Old San Juan

The Ports Authority maintains several piers in Old San Juan containing warehouses and transit sheds having a combined useable space of approximately 430,000 square feet. In actuality, the warehouses on the piers of Old San Juan are not being used as public warehouses but as transit sheds. In discussing the location of warehouses, the American Association of Port Authorities in Port Design and Construction stated:

"For reasons of economy of operations, the distance from the operating berth should be kept to a minimum to cut down travel time for stevedoring equipment, and provide for the rapid loading or unloading of the ship. This distance, however, should not be so close to an operating berth that the warehouse could be used as a transit shed, thus changing its true function. Generally speaking, this would mean that a warehouse should not be closer to an operating berth than the length of the berth.""

63

The storage space on the piers is hampered by narrow apron spaces or poorly designed sheds. Many of the piers are over 50 years old and incompatible with present day handling requirements. Several piers, therefore, are able to accommodate only light cargo due to their weakened condition. In addition, the location of these piers hampers movement of cargo from the piers inland. As previously indicated, the streets leading from the piers are narrow and inadequate for efficient circulation required in cargo handling. In discussing size requirements for facilities of this type, "Port Design and Construction" makes the following observation:

"The overall dimensions of a warehouse are quite often limited by the available space. However, where space restrictions do not occur, the size can be best established by the use to which the warehouse is to be put.

53 The American Association of Port Authorities, Inc., Port Design and Construction (Washington: 1964), p. 88.

There are three transit sheds located adjacent to the berthing facilities at Puerto Nuevo. Two of the transit sheds, located beside berths A and B, are owned by the Ports Authority and used by Lykes and foreign carriers. These transit sheds have a total useable space of approximately 110,000 square feet. Sea-Land utilizes shed D, amounting to another 100,000 square feet of useable space for LTL shipments originating in the West Coast. It also operates a truck warehouse of about 50,000 square foot capacity nearby (par. B 2b). As previously indicated, stripping and stuffing operations require an additional 100,000 square feet of storage space to handle present traffic. Additional storage space is required by TMT and Berwind Lines operations (par. B 2b).

4. Isla Grande

The facilities at Isla Grande are shared by Seatrain, TMT, and Berwind Lines. Seatrain operates a 32,000 square foot transit shed, and TMT and Berwind Lines have converted naval air ship hangars into storage facilities. TMT's warehouse contains 100,000 square feet of useable storage space.

5. Private Warehousing

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Marketing Research Report No. 733 characterizes the facilities for the storage of food products as inadequate. This publication states:

"Inadequate facilities contribute more to high costs of operation in the markets than any other single factor, primarily because of the extra labor required for performing jobs that could be done much more easily, cheaply, and simply with adequate facilities. Both the size and shape of many facilities are inadequate for the operations being per

54 Ibid.

Although the need for additional warehousing has been recognized by many, there have been very few changes in the public facilities over the last decade. Only six new public warehouses have been constructed. During the same period, Puerto Rico's trade increased over 100 percent and is expected to double its 1967 volume by 1975. Moreover, the Ports Authority will double the number of berths at Puerto Nuevo by 1985. There should be approximately 70,000 to 100,000 square feet of transit shed area per ship berth. As stated previously, warehouses used in conjunction with transit sheds should be of comparable size.

7. Development of Public and Private Warehousing

The shortage of public and private warehousing is a serious problem which requires the effective action of business and government. This lack has been due partially to the former practices regarding collection of demurrage charges by ocean carriers who had permitted many consignees or shippers with inadequate storage

55 Letter of Godofredo M. Gaetan, Chairman, Puerto Rico PSC, Mar. 10, 1970 to Paul Gonzalez, Chief, Branch of Trade Studies and Special Projects, FMC.