Johannesburg, 14 September 2026 — The DGT truck delays 2026 story has moved from complaint to admission. Durban Gateway Terminal (DGT) has conceded that its slot-booking system is not working. It made the admission to the Road Freight Association (RFA), the South African Freight and Logistics Association (SAFLA), Transnet and its own operator ICTSI. SA Trucker reported the concession on Saturday. DGT says it has already developed a replacement. Stakeholders will see it before it goes live.
The terminal has also waived storage charges while the disruption lasts. Meanwhile, generator sets cover power interruptions. An accelerated maintenance programme is trying to keep cranes and straddle carriers running. DGT also told the meeting that it needs substantial refurbishment to compete with regional ports. Replacement equipment is on order, but it faces long delivery lead times. In turn, SAFLA and the RFA have offered data and expertise to a proposed joint recovery task team. That team would include DGT, Transnet and government.
The numbers behind the admission arrived a day earlier. Freight News reported the SAAFF/BUSA Cargo Movement Update on Friday, covering conditions to 10 September. It put DGT throughput at 3,672 TEUs a day between 14 August and 10 September. By comparison, the preceding four months averaged 5,286 TEUs a day, so the fall is 30.5%. Waterside volumes also ran at about 63% of the same period in 2025. Vessels that secured a berth had first waited roughly 212 hours at anchorage. They then spent about 125 hours alongside. Still, the anchorage queue did shorten, from ten vessels on 7 September to five on 10 September.
The Corridor Numbers Behind The DGT Truck Delays 2026
Then there is the corridor view. Crickmay’s Corridor Pulse report for the week to 6 September recorded Durban’s highest vessel turnaround of the year. Total port call time rose 26.5% week on week, from 6.86 days to 8.67 days. The measure runs from arrival at anchorage to departure from the berth. Crickmay placed the Johannesburg–Durban N3 corridor on “watch” as a result. However, the landside held. Heavy-vehicle dwell times in the port precinct stayed stable, and average N3 transit time improved 3.1% to 13.4 hours. In other words, the pressure sits on the marine side, and trucks inherit it at the gate.
What Changed Since The Competition Commission Complaint
A week ago the story was a formal complaint by 140 hauliers against DGT and eight shipping lines. Now the operator has conceded the core grievance in front of the same associations. RFA chief executive Gavin Kelly told the meeting that fleets are standing without bookings while fixed costs run. Drivers are queuing on Bayhead Road, he said, and every standing hour ends up in the price of goods. Moreover, the storage-fee waiver carries its own admission. Cargo owners could not have collected on time even if they had tried.
Analysis
What The DGT Truck Delays 2026 Cost A Container Haulier
Kelly’s phrase “fixed costs run” is the right one, so the Desk has put a number on it. First, take a tri-axle container rig financed at roughly R1.2 million. The instalment is about R25,000 a month, insurance R8,000 and the driver R18,000 under the new super-heavy wage category. Licensing, tracking and admin add R4,000. Together, that is about R55,000 a month before a wheel turns. Spread over a 240-hour productive month, it comes to roughly R230 for every hour the truck stands. Furthermore, an idling engine burns about three litres an hour, which at September diesel prices adds close to R90. The Desk has followed this arc from eThekwini’s congestion plan through the sector’s conditional backing to the complaint. Consequently, this is the first time the Desk can price the terminal’s own admission.
The Desk Calculation: Standing Time Into Rand
Positive Freight Solutions has put the stationary window at four to 22 hours per port visit. So, at R320 an hour all in, the short end costs about R1,280 per truck per visit. The long end costs about R7,040. Next, assume five port visits a week at an average eight-hour wait. That is roughly R12,800 a week per truck, or about R51,000 a month. Yet the rig’s entire fixed cost base is R55,000. In effect, the queue is consuming a second truck’s overhead. Now scale it to the terminal. Here, the gap between the four-month average and the current rate is 1,614 TEUs a day. At roughly 1.6 TEUs per truck, that is about 1,000 gate moves a day that are not happening. Those loads are either waiting on Bayhead Road, sitting at anchorage or already diverted to another port.
DGT Truck Delays 2026: Throughput And Waiting Times
| Measure | Value | Source / period |
|---|---|---|
| Daily throughput, 14 Aug–10 Sep | 3,672 TEU | SAAFF/BUSA CMU |
| Daily throughput, 14 Apr–13 Aug | 5,286 TEU | SAAFF/BUSA CMU |
| Change | −30.5% | Desk calculation |
| Waterside volumes vs 2025 | ~63% | SAAFF/BUSA CMU |
| Average anchorage wait | ~212 hours | Vessels berthed to 10 Sep |
| Average time alongside | ~125 hours | Completed vessels to 10 Sep |
| Anchorage queue | 10 → 5 vessels | 7 Sep → 10 Sep |
| Vessel port call time | 8.67 days (+26.5% w/w) | Crickmay, week to 6 Sep |
| N3 JHB–Durban transit | 13.4 hours (−3.1% w/w) | Crickmay, week to 6 Sep |
The Numbers Behind The DGT Truck Delays 2026
Fleet Impact
The Fleet Playbook While The New Slot System Is Built
DGT has promised to consult before switching systems. That gives hauliers a short window to arrive with evidence rather than anecdotes. The operators who shape the new booking rules will be the ones with an hour-by-hour record. Specifically, it must show where their trucks stood and for how long. Live GPS vehicle tracking with geofenced timestamps at Bayhead Road, the staging areas and the gate produces that record automatically. Meanwhile, Digit D-Fuel separates idling burn from driving burn, so the queue’s diesel cost lands on the right invoice line.
- Geofence the terminal approach and log every arrival, gate-in and gate-out. Hand the standing-hour data to SAFLA and the RFA for the recovery task team; the Desk figure of R320 an hour turns it into a claim.
- Invoice standing time now. The storage-fee waiver proves DGT accepts the delays are its own; a demurrage clause at R320 an hour is defensible on the same logic.
- Do not book more slots than the terminal can honour. Until the new system is live, match bookings to the 3,672 TEU-a-day reality and route the surplus through Ngqura or Cape Town where the contract allows.
- Watch the anchorage count. It halved between 7 and 10 September; if it stays at five or fewer for two weeks, landside recovery follows and slot availability improves with it.
Fleet Technology
Fleet Technology For A Terminal That Cannot Keep Time
A haulier cannot fix the terminal. However, it can prove exactly what the terminal cost it. DigitFMS geofencing stamps every entry and exit at Bayhead Road, the staging yard and the DGT gate. The result is a standing-time ledger that survives a dispute. Digit D-Fuel then logs the litres consumed at idle inside that ledger, while driver identification ties each hour to a shift. Cartrack, Netstar, Tracker, Ctrack and MiX by Powerfleet sell into the same market. What sets DigitFMS apart is proximity. A Durban branch sits among more than 100 nationwide. So support is minutes from the port, not a call centre away.
Key Numbers · DGT Truck Delays 2026
DGT throughput: 3,672 TEU/day (14 Aug–10 Sep) vs 5,286 TEU/day (14 Apr–13 Aug), −30.5%; waterside volumes ~63% of 2025; anchorage wait ~212 hrs; alongside ~125 hrs; anchorage queue 10 (7 Sep) → 5 (10 Sep)
Crickmay Corridor Pulse, week to 6 Sep: Durban port call time 6.86 → 8.67 days (+26.5% w/w), 2026 high; N3 on “watch”; JHB–Durban transit 13.9 → 13.4 hrs (−3.1%); precinct dwell times stable
DGT admission (stakeholder engagement, reported 12 Sep): slot-booking system acknowledged as failing, replacement developed, to be shared before implementation; storage charges waived; gensets deployed; accelerated maintenance; refurbishment needed, equipment ordered with long lead times; SAFLA/RFA offer data for joint recovery task team
Desk calculation: tri-axle container rig fixed cost ≈ R55,000/month (finance R25,000, insurance R8,000, driver R18,000, licensing/tracking/admin R4,000) ≈ R230 per productive hour; idling diesel ≈ 3 l/h ≈ R90; all-in ≈ R320/standing hour; 4-hr wait ≈ R1,280, 22-hr ≈ R7,040; 5 visits × 8 hrs ≈ R12,800/week ≈ R51,000/month; throughput gap 1,614 TEU/day ≈ 1,000 gate moves/day at 1.6 TEU/truck
Context: 140-haulier Competition Commission complaint (Art 126, 7 Sep); ICTSI 25-year concession from 1 Jan 2026, Transnet 51%; Transnet FY26 profit included R12.5bn gain on the DGT stake sale
Source: SAAFF/BUSA Cargo Movement Update to 10 September 2026 as reported by Freight News; Crickmay Corridor Pulse (week ending 6 September) via Freight News; SA Trucker report of the DGT stakeholder engagement, 12 September 2026.
Questions Answered
Frequently Asked Questions: DGT Truck Delays 2026
What Has Durban Gateway Terminal Admitted?
At an engagement with SAFLA, the RFA, Transnet and ICTSI, DGT conceded that its slot-booking system is failing. It says it has developed a replacement. In addition, it has waived storage charges and deployed generators for power interruptions. Finally, it admits the terminal needs substantial refurbishment, with equipment still on order.
How Far Has DGT Throughput Fallen?
Daily throughput averaged 3,672 TEUs between 14 August and 10 September. That is 30.5% below the 5,286 TEUs a day of the preceding four months. Waterside volumes were about 63% of the same period in 2025. Meanwhile, vessels waited around 212 hours at anchorage before berthing.
Is The N3 Corridor Affected?
Not yet on the road itself. Crickmay placed the N3 on “watch” because vessel turnaround hit a 2026 high of 8.67 days. However, heavy-vehicle dwell times in the port precinct stayed stable, and Johannesburg–Durban transit improved to 13.4 hours. The delay sits at the terminal gate, not on the highway.
What Does A Standing Hour Cost A Container Haulier?
The Desk estimate is about R320 an hour. That is roughly R230 in fixed costs for a tri-axle rig plus about R90 of idling diesel. So a four-hour wait costs about R1,280 and a 22-hour wait about R7,040. Over five visits a week at eight hours each, that adds up to roughly R51,000 a month.
When Will The New Slot System Go Live?
DGT has not given a date. Instead, it said the solution exists and that stakeholders will see it before implementation. SAFLA and the RFA have asked to join a joint recovery task team. That forum would settle the roll-out timing.
How Does This Fit The DGT Truck Delays 2026 Timeline?
ICTSI took operational control on 1 January. Congestion then escalated in mid-August after the systems transition. SAAFF declared a crisis. Then 140 hauliers lodged a Competition Commission complaint in early September. Now the operator has conceded the booking problem. From here, the next markers are the task team’s terms and the anchorage count.
Facts checked 14 September 2026. Source: SA Trucker, Freight News (throughput), Freight News (Corridor Pulse) and Moneyweb. Related: the sector’s conditions on the Durban freight strategy and Transnet’s 2026 results and the DGT stake sale.
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