Intermodal Rail Yard: An opportunity for Jax ?

[vicupstate]

A long-awaited rail yard at Charlotte Douglas International Airport has started moving cargo, and city leaders are hoping the new facility will help spark a building boom and lure new businesses to land around the airport.
Nestled between two runways on a patch of cement sunk 40 feet below ground level, the 200-acre Norfolk Southern rail yard moves shipping containers from trains to trucks, and vice versa.

Economic development officials say the "intermodal yard" – so called because it moves rail freight from one mode of transportation to another – will help Charlotte become a bigger player in the logistics industry. It's built to handle 200,000 such transfers a year, with parking for 1,331 trucks.

"It increases our capacity," said Ronnie Bryant, CEO of the Charlotte Regional Partnership. "It truly legitimizes our efforts to be a logistics center. Logistics plays right into manufacturing."

Last week, rolling cranes hoisted metal shipping containers off double-stacked rail cars while 18-wheelers moved in and out of the yard bearing boxes loaded with cargo. Planes crept over the sunken rail tracks on taxiway bridges to and from runways, while other jets thundered in to land.

In an effort to spur development, the Charlotte City Council recently established a staff committee to study what infrastructure needs to be built around the airport.

"This is the beginning of something we feel is really big for the city, the airport and the region," said assistant aviation director Jack Christine, chairman of the committee. The group, which includes representatives from the city manager's office, planning, transportation and utilities departments, plans to present its findings to the City Council in about six months.

The hope is that improved roads and other infrastructure, such as water and sewer service, will attract more businesses, including manufacturing, trucking and warehouse companies. More than 5,000 acres of largely undeveloped land known as Dixie Berryhill sits west of the airport, and Charlotte Douglas is spending $35 million to buy a 370-acre neighborhood south of the rail yard.

Christine said about 25 properties in the neighborhood have been purchased, and an additional 60 are at the appraisal stage before the airport buys them. The plan is to raze the houses and use the land for businesses tied to the rail yard.

Charlotte's capital improvement plan also includes $43 million worth of road improvements in Dixie Berryhill. Christine said his committee is looking at the best way to build those roads, which will also include modifications to straighten and expand existing roads.

A grand opening of the intermodal yard is planned for next year, said Norfolk Southern spokesman Robin Chapman. Most of the rails have been laid and rolling cranes are in place, but construction of buildings and support facilities is ongoing.

The lot cost $92 million, including almost $16 million worth of state and federal grants. North Carolina and Charlotte also funded $9.7 million worth of road improvements around the rail yard, including a new interchange at Interstate 485 and West Boulevard that allows trucks easier access to the facility.

The rail company is paying Charlotte Douglas $1 million in rent each year and has the option to expand the yard if it chooses. Norfolk Southern is also closing its 40-acre rail yard north of uptown, which will give Charlotte the opportunity to redevelop that land.

A long time in the making

The airport's plan for making itself a logistics center dates back more than a decade. A 1997 report by consultant Michael Gallis sums up the long-range idea: "Build Charlotte into the fourth major logistics hub on the East Coast of North America to compete with New York, Atlanta and Miami."

Intermodal shipping is on the rise nationwide, as companies look to ship more goods by rail closer to their final destination. That's because shipping long distances by rail is generally cheaper and more fuel-efficient than shipping by trucks.

Projections call for the expanded rail yard to take 392,000 long-haul truck trips off the road each year in North Carolina, as more goods move by train. Although the rail yard will employ about 160 people directly, the Charlotte Regional Partnership estimates it will generate 7,000 new jobs throughout the region by 2030.

The companies that use intermodal shipping to move products through Charlotte include many recognizable names, according to the Charlotte Regional Partnership, such as Home Depot, Wal-Mart, Target and Whirlpool.

Norfolk Southern is building a $2.5 billion project called the Crescent Corridor, designed to upgrade tracks between New Jersey and Louisiana along with a network of new intermodal yards. The company opened a new intermodal yard in Memphis, Tenn., that is twice the size of Charlotte's, at 400 acres. Earlier this year, Norfolk Southern also opened new intermodal yards in Birmingham, Ala., and Greencastle, Pa.

Norfolk Southern competitor CSX is also expanding its rail network with the $850 million National Gateway project.

Please note that while this article is about a yard in Charlotte, these are popping up in lots of places.  A smaller one just opened in Greenville-Spartanburg as well.  Is there any effort to do this at JIA or maybe Cecil Field?  Obviously the jury is still out on if these bring the anticipated economic benefits, but if Jax waits too long, will it lose the opportunity?  Very curious to know what a certain rail/Oklahoma enthusiast thinks. 

Just think if the Fuller Warren funds were switched to something like this.

[I-10east]

I agree. If any city that should have an intermodal rail yard, it should be the city that has the CSX headquarters.

[thelakelander]

Cecil and the airport in Green Cove Springs have rail (or have ROW for it when needed) but the state DOT will send that $136 million for the FWB to another Florida city needing road improvements before they sink it into a railyard. Nevertheless, we have an intermodal yard being built near Dames Point right now and CSX's S-Line is being upgraded from Jax to Lakeland. Plans are also in the works for a Northside bypass. Whenever this happens, we could end up with some existing track having the capacity for passenger rail.

[Keith-N-Jax]

Nah we don't need them, since other cities have them.

[thelakelander]

Well we do have a port. That's something Charlotte will never have. Or port has long needed rail upgrades, that's happening now and it should be a boost to the local logistics industry. So we're essentially making the same moves on that end. Charlotte's just happens to be more a dream with air cargo while ours is helping facilitate growth in an already established but highly competitive industry. We're also a gateway to the soon to be 3rd largest state in the country for both NS and CSX. FEC is also making strong expansion moves throughout the state.  We should probably be focusing a bit more on how we can benefit from the smaller inland ports and logistics centers being built throughout the Southeast.

[Keith-N-Jax]

Oh I was just kidding.

[thelakelander]

Oh I know.   I read back through the article Vic posted and just added to my reply after understanding a little more about what they are hoping for.

[mtraininjax]

The barren wasteland also known as LaVilla has been an "opportunity" for some time. Yet it remains barren and a wasteland.

Every desolate piece of property or area of town cannot be labeled an "opportunity".

[thelakelander]

How long has Brooklyn been considered a desolate area? Now look at what's taking place.

[Ocklawaha]

We have three massive ones up and running and another on the way...

An airport-rail-truck yard could be built at Cecil though Green Cove Springs is probably a better location with turnkey airport-rail-truck and barge access.

Yes, it is a huge economic driver.

[fieldafm]

The barren wasteland also known as LaVilla has been an "opportunity" for some time. Yet it remains barren and a wasteland.

Every desolate piece of property or area of town cannot be labeled an "opportunity".

Accept mediocracy.  Brilliant!

[spuwho]

CSX has already committed the money they got from the Sunrail ROW sale to FDOT to upgrade the Dames Point/Blount Island rail infra.

I have seen the rail upgrades they are doing at Charlotte Douglas on the NS line the last time I had biz there and while I understand the co-placement opportunities exist, I think this was more an accommodation to get that NS yard out of central Charlotte. Many residents in the city center were complaining of idling engines and late night horns.

NS has already stated they are more interested in NOLA/NYNJ Port Authority traffic.

FEC has put their stake in the ground in Hialeah for logistics using the deep port of Miami as their source.

The fact that Cecil Commerce didn't maintain an active ROW is odd knowing the market. It seems to be going after more LTL than anything.

[mtraininjax]

Accept mediocracy.  Brilliant!

LOL!

Let's name a few opportunities downtown:
1) Shipyards
2) Berkman II
3) JEA Southside Generation Station
4) Phillips Highway busted development north of Emerson, collecting weeds.
5) Old Public Library (someone signed a lease, but no one inside, yet)
6) Park View Inn
7) Countless parking lots downtown, Springfield, LaVilla
Bostwick Building
9) Landing parking garage
10) New library retail space at bottom of parking garage

I am sure Lake will fill in all the blanks, as these are obvious, but hey, why don't we look to take over land from an intermodal yard and look to spread the resources thin? Let's continue to build what we have going on along Riverside Ave and in other areas. I don't see how that is mediocrity, but I've been wrong before.