The Georgia Ports Authority is celebrating its front-line customers in the motor carrier industry during National Truck Driver Appreciation Week.

“Our partners in the trucking industry are a critical link between our global vessel services and the domestic supply chain,” said GPA President and CEO Griff Lynch. “At Georgia Ports, every week is trucker appreciation week.”

To acknowledge drivers’ contributions, GPA employees will hand out safety gloves, bottles of water and chicken sandwiches at the terminal truck gates Thursday.

Lynch said GPA works daily to ensure a positive trucker experience, noting that gate and yard efficiency at the Port of Savannah’s Garden City Terminal help drivers complete more container moves each day.

It takes only 8 minutes, 12 seconds on average for a driver entering the terminal to go from the biometric reading station, complete the check-in process and depart the gate canopy. The Port of Savannah achieved total truck turn times across July and August of only 34 minutes for a single-container move and 54 minutes for truckers delivering an export and picking up an import container.

Approximately 80 percent of truck transactions at the Port of Savannah involve such double moves, compared to only 30 percent at major West Coast ports.

“Savannah’s ability to quickly handle these dual transactions reduces the number of truck trips required to move the same cargo, avoids diesel emissions and allows drivers to be more profitable by handling more containers per day,” Lynch said. “Drivers in Savannah can make up to eight truck turns per day, compared to two per day at Southern California terminals.”

Garden City Terminal averages approximately 14,000 truck moves each weekday, or around 7,000 trucks in, 7,000 trucks out, according to the most recent figures from the Georgia Ports Authority.

Lynch said truck turn times at the Port of Savannah are among the fastest of any major port.

“Our 1,500-acre single-terminal model in Savannah means drivers do not have to go through multiple gate transactions when handling cargo from two different shipping lines,” Lynch said.

Georgia is investing both on- and off-terminal to accommodate the free flow of cargo.

“Whether it’s across the terminal or across the state, Georgia Ports provides the infrastructure and customer service necessary to ensure freight moves safely and without congestion,” said GPA Board Chairman Kent Fountain. “The Peach State understands the importance of a reliable logistics network.”