A Car a Minute Used to Flow Through Here, but Chaos Now Reigns

A shipping terminal in Kansas reveals the fundamental problem — no one can plan, and no one is sure what will happen next.

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Just after 5:30 on a chilly November morning, David Heide arrives at the shipping terminal on the industrial fringes of Kansas City, Kan., wondering what fresh torment the day has in store.

His company, Jack Cooper Transport, delivers new cars to dealerships from auto factories around the United States. It carries some on tractor-trailers, and sends more by rail.

Before the global supply chain descended into chaos, the terminal ran on a steady and dependable rhythm. Roughly once every minute, a new car emerged from the General Motors Fairfax factory next door and landed in the terminal parking lot. Rail cars brought in a predictable influx of vehicles from other G.M. factories. Mr. Heide, the Fairfax terminal manager, could deploy drivers and yard crews with assurance.