Container freight stations phasing out. (Second time in two years).

In a move to emphasize core mission responsibilities, the Military Traffic Management Command is phasing out its container freight stations.

The facilities, located on both the East and West Coasts, are no longer a core part of the command's transportation mission, said Frank Galluzzo, Director, Distribution Analysis Center.

"We've gotten out of the business," said Galluzzo, in a meeting with shipping executives Jan. 23. "We're almost out of it totally in two years."

As recently as 18 months ago, MTMC operated a quartet of freight stations, where cargo was loaded and unloaded from containers. Three of the stations are now closed. The status of a fourth station is under study.

The workload conducted at the container freight stations has been shifted to the Defense Logistics Agency's Defense Distribution Center in Tracy, Calif.

"There was a lot of duplication," said Galluzzo. "This is not one of our core missions. The Defense Distribution Center is already doing the same work on a 24-hour basis."

The most recent station to close down was Kent, Wash., near Seattle, on Feb. 28.

Two stations closed earlier: Alameda, Calif., on April 30, 1999, and Oakland, Calif., on Dec. 31, 1999.

A container freight station in Norfolk is currently under review.

"The idea is to reduce the outlets of freight to a few," said Galluzzo. "Then you can explode distribution from a select number of ports."