Port Productivity : Rail Connections

Special Report

US railroads , ports double down on inland port investments

By Michael Angell , Ari Ashe and Bill Mongelluzzo

Railroads and port authorities on all three US coasts are increasing their investments in “ inland ports ” — rail terminals with direct links to marine facilities — and expanding existing intermodal services in an effort to grow the amount of cargo travelling to and from the US interior by rail .

The Georgia Ports Authority ( GPA ) will begin construction this year on a new inland port serving shippers moving containers between the Port of Savannah and Northeast Georgia , the Port of Mobile is teaming up with CSX Transportation on a new rail facility in northern Alabama , BNSF Railway and Union Pacific Railroad ( UP ) are expanding an intermodal service to and from the Port of Houston , and UP is working with Tri-Cities Intermodal to launch a short-line service between the Port of Tacoma and Walla Walla , Wash .

GPA is spending $ 127 million on the Blue Ridge Connector , a 104-acre inland rail terminal at the Gateway Industrial Centre north of Gainesville , Ga ., due to open in 2026 . In addition to the GPA funding , the Blue Ridge Connector also received a $ 46.8 million grant from the US Department of Transportation ’ s Infrastructure for Rebuilding America ( INFRA ) program in 2021 .

The terminal will have 18,000 feet of working track and an annual lift capacity of up to 200,000 containers . Norfolk Southern Railway ( NS ) will provide rail service to the Blue Ridge Connector from Savannah ’ s Mason Mega rail terminal , the lift capacity of which was upgraded to 1 million containers per year in 2022 .

The Blue Ridge Connector , which is more than 300 miles from the port along the Interstate 85 and 985 corridors , will feature two inbound and outbound truck gates .

Getting ocean freight to Gainesville currently involves trucking or railing a container 300 miles to Atlanta , with an additional 70-mile truck move to Gainesville . GPA Chief Executive Griff Lynch said in a statement the ability of shippers to use an all-rail service to Gainesville is “ a

36 Journal of Commerce | March 25 , 2024 www . joc . com