A newly released study confirms what many shippers have suspected: Atlanta-bound cargo through Savannah offers shippers lower costs, greater reliability, and similar transit times compared to West Coast ports. 

According to independent research conducted by Georgia Tech’s Supply Chain and Logistics Institute (SCL), shipping through Savannah offers a 32% cost savings over West Coast ports, while delivering comparable transit times and greater reliability. 

“While vessel transit from China to the U.S. West Coast is shorter than East Coast transits, supply chain rehandling and congestion can lead to delays,” says Benoit Montreuil, executive director, Supply Chain and Logistics Institute at Georgia Tech. “Containers routed via West Coast ports are often trucked to local warehouses for transloading into 53’ domestic containers and then drayed to railheads for transit to Atlanta, which can add further delays and transit variability.”  

The study, “Shipping Variability and Trade Route Decision-Making,” evaluated shipping performance from 10 major Asian ports to Atlanta. The research accounted for complete end-to-end shipping costs and times, including both ocean and inland transportation. Savannah emerged as the more efficient and cost-effective gateway. 

“These are powerful findings that we understood anecdotally, but now have been proven by the research,” said Griff Lynch, president and CEO of Georgia Ports Authority. “Savannah’s terminal velocity combined with faster inland routes overcome the West Coast Ocean transit.” 

The study was conducted at Georgia Tech’s Physical Internet Center, a hub for global logistics innovation established in 2006 by Professor Montreuil. SCL researchers, comprising professors and Ph.D. students, are focused on creating smarter, more sustainable supply chain systems. In addition to its Atlanta-based work, SCL collaborates with international partners in Europe and Asia. The recent collaboration with Georgia Ports Authority is among several initiatives where SCL will continue to provide expertise for improving efficiencies across statewide transportation and logistics networks.  

“Logistics is a global challenge, and it takes collaboration across countries and disciplines. By combining academic insight with industry data, we’re helping design systems that are more efficient, more resilient, and better for the future,” says Xiao Huang, PhD student, Operations Research. 

“It’s encouraging to see that the research we do can go beyond the university and help improve supply chain systems on the ground.”  

To learn more about this study, watch here.