On Track Investment

The Mississippi River Intermodal Terminal and railyard improvements place the Port of New Orleans on the fast track to increased efficiency and future terminal development

On Feb. 17, flanked by the Secret Service and escorted by Port of New Orleans President and CEO Gary LaGrange, terminal operators and Port workers, the Vice President of the United States toured the new Mississippi River Intermodal Terminal at the Port of New Orleans. In commemoration of the seventh anniversary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Vice President Joe Biden visited sites that directly benefited from monies provided for infrastructure development. The Mississippi River Intermodal Terminal represents the act’s intended purpose—infrastructure investment, job preservation and creation and energy efficiency.

“The Mississippi River Intermodal Terminal is important not only to our state, but it will definitely have a global impact on how we are moving goods,” said LaGrange. “The new terminal will facilitate the movement of marine and rail cargo, stimulate international commerce and enhance safety, all while reducing the carbon footprint of regional and national transportation systems within our market– which constitutes 62 percent of the consumers of the United States.”

The Port’s Mississippi River Intermodal Terminal, a $24.8 million project made possible by $16.7 million from Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery Program III grant funds (TIGER grant), is a new on-dock intermodal railyard providing the Port’s Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal with access to the six Class I rail lines serving the Port of New Orleans. The facility began operations on March 30 and a dedication ceremony was held on April 12.

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The Port contributed the additional capital funds, which were used to employ AECOM Technical Services and its team of consultants to provide design and construction administration services for the railyard improvement project. The team performed the overall planning and design and provided project management and delivery. The collaboration included Gotech providing surveying services; PSI providing construction materials testing; Eustis Engineering providing geotechnical engineering; IMC Consulting Engineers providing mechanical and electrical engineering; Boos-Navarre providing specialty crane specification and construction oversight; and Jemison and Partners providing grant compliance and public outreach services.

The new railyard features 1,550 feet of tracks on-site in addition to a 2,200-foot runaround track. New rubber-tired gantry cranes (RTGs) by Konecranes were added to the project, further increasing the cargo handling capability and efficiency. Throughput capacity is 160,000 TEUs per year, 5 times the current volume handled annually.

 This is good news for New Orleans Public Belt Railroad (NOPB), the short line railroad that provides the Port’s connectivity to its Class I rail line partners.

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“New Orleans is a major player for national and international cargo operations, and now we have the assets and capabilities needed to remain competitive in a global economy,” said Jeff Davis, CEO of NOPB. “The new railyard will improve shipping logistics tremendously— which will in turn grow cargo business for the Port of New Orleans.”

There are more than four acres of 18-inch concrete paving that will provide 64,000 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) more in marshalling capacity, and it is environmentally friendly—all wins for the Port and its partners, according to Port of New Orleans Chief Commercial Officer Robert Landry.

“The Mississippi River Intermodal Terminal will provide a much more effectual option for our customers wishing to move goods via rail,” said Landry. “The improvements will also advance our storage capacity drastically—allowing almost 400 new 20-foot slots for stacking loaded containers five high.”

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The new terminal design replaced an older railyard in providing connectivity to the Port’s container terminal. By redirecting the tracks away from the waterfront, valuable container marshalling space will now be available for the planned expansion of the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal. The intermodal yard is operated by Port tenant New Orleans Terminal (NOT), and they are committed to meeting the demands of the increased productivity and planned expansion.

“At current capacity NOT works the intermodal yard three times per week but increased demand would influence that number to change,” said Kris Calkins, General Manager of New Orleans Terminal. “We are definitely prepared to handle the increased throughput.”

The new terminal design replaced an older railyard in providing connectivity to the Port’s container terminal. By redirecting the tracks away from the waterfront, valuable container marshalling space will now be available for the planned expansion of the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal. The intermodal yard is operated by Port tenant New Orleans Terminal (NOT), and they are committed to meeting the demands of the increased productivity and planned expansion.

Currently, Canadian National Railway (CN) is the primary rail partner utilizing the Mississippi River Intermodal Terminal, moving FAK (freight of all kinds) in steam ship line containers on a daily basis. Some of the major commodities moving in these containers are steel, coffee, forest products, and manufactured and finished goods. The new intermodal yard, with its efficient design and streamlined throughput abilities, will allow CN to grow their business relationship with the Port, stated Dan Bresolin, Assistant Vice President of International Intermodal at CN. CN is also looking forward to increasing inland destinations to provide carriers that call at the Port with more options.

“CN has and is expanding our inland reach. We are marketing additional inland points such as Indianapolis, Decatur (Illinois), Chippewa Falls and Arcadia (Wisconsin) as well as growth in the Detroit area,” said Bresolin. “CN is proud to be the primary intermodal solution for the Port of New Orleans servicing the major geographical freight hubs in North America. CN is working in collaboration with our partners to continue to grow the business through strategic marketing initiatives.”

By Nakeila Polk

 

Top: Port President and CEO Gary LaGrange spoke with Vice President Joe Biden during a tour of the new Mississippi River Intermodal Terminal. Pictured (from left) New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards, Vice President Joe Biden, Port President and CEO Gary LaGrange, Rauno Maenausta-Konecranes USA, Kenneth Price-New Orleans Terminal, Kristopher Calkins-New Orleans Terminal, Richard Schaefer Jr.-New Orleans Terminal, Louisiana Secretary of Transportation and Development Shawn Wilson, U.S. Department of Transportation Deputy Secretary Victor Mendez, and U.S. Rep. Cedric Richmond.

Bottom: The new intermodal yard throughput capacity is 160,000 TEUs per year,
5 times the current volume handled annually.

 

 

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