THE US port of Long Beach has approved an US$870 million budget for a new on-dock rail support facility at pier B that will transfer containers from trucks to rail in a more efficient and sustainable manner.
'Moving more cargo by train helps our marine terminals transfer cargo faster. At the same time, it helps us make progress toward the environmental goals the commission set in the Clean Air Action Plan and continue to lead the industry on sustainable operations,' harbour commissioner president Tracy Egoscue was quoted as saying in a report by FreightWaves, New York.
Currently, the ability to build long trains is limited due to the lack of adequate yard tracks and the configuration of mainline tracks, the port said. The pier B facility would provide track space to join together sections of trains assembled at terminals.
The first arrival, departure and storage tracks are expected to be completed in 2024, with additional tracks coming online in 2030, followed by project completion in 2032.
Once completed, the pier B on-dock rail facility will take 35 to 50 per cent of the TEU volume coming out of Long Beach, according to a port spokesperson. Container volumes for both Long Beach and Los Angeles are expected to reach 30 million TEU by 2032.
The facility will eventually mean more freight for Berkshire Hathaway's and Union Pacific, the two incumbent rail providers in the region.
Port of Long Beach already has on-dock rail at five of its six terminals. On-dock rail currently handles a quarter of the container volume coming through the port. Year to date, the port's container throughput rose nine per cent to 5.3 million TEU.
'Moving more cargo by train helps our marine terminals transfer cargo faster. At the same time, it helps us make progress toward the environmental goals the commission set in the Clean Air Action Plan and continue to lead the industry on sustainable operations,' harbour commissioner president Tracy Egoscue was quoted as saying in a report by FreightWaves, New York.
Currently, the ability to build long trains is limited due to the lack of adequate yard tracks and the configuration of mainline tracks, the port said. The pier B facility would provide track space to join together sections of trains assembled at terminals.
The first arrival, departure and storage tracks are expected to be completed in 2024, with additional tracks coming online in 2030, followed by project completion in 2032.
Once completed, the pier B on-dock rail facility will take 35 to 50 per cent of the TEU volume coming out of Long Beach, according to a port spokesperson. Container volumes for both Long Beach and Los Angeles are expected to reach 30 million TEU by 2032.
The facility will eventually mean more freight for Berkshire Hathaway's and Union Pacific, the two incumbent rail providers in the region.
Port of Long Beach already has on-dock rail at five of its six terminals. On-dock rail currently handles a quarter of the container volume coming through the port. Year to date, the port's container throughput rose nine per cent to 5.3 million TEU.