Officials at the Port of Long Beach are celebrating the completion of a US$93 million rail project vital for improving the efficiency and sustainability of cargo movement as shipment volumes increase at the port.
The ‘Green Port Gateway’ project was green-lighted for construction at the end of 2012 and was completed in 2015.
The project realigned a critical rail pathway to relieve a bottleneck, allowing port terminals to increase their use of on-dock rail, while at the same time decreasing truck traffic and air pollution.
The port has recently recovered from an intense period of congestion which was exacerbated by the closure at a number of US West Coast (USWC) ports.
Mr Hacegaba has also written a Technical Paper on the Port of Long Beach, which will feature in Edition 67 of PTI’s journal – the Mega-Ports Edition.
The upgrades will serve the port’s southeast terminals, including the new Middle Harbor terminal.
The work included adding a third rail line under Ocean Boulevard, along with new retaining walls, utility line modifications and roadway improvements.
Every on-dock rail train eliminates as many as 750 truck trips from regional roadways.
Lori Ann Guzmán, President of the Board of Harbor Commissioners at the Port of Long Beach, said: “The Green Port Gateway shows the Port of Long Beach’s commitment to moving trade in an environmentally responsible way. I want to thank our state and federal partners who recognised the importance of this critical project.”
The port is planning $1 billion in rail projects over the next decade as part of a broader modernisation programme to strengthen the port’s competitiveness and reduce port-related impacts to the environment.
Port of Long Beach CEO Jon Slangerup said the Green Port Gateway is a key part of building the ‘Port of the Future’.
Slangerup added: “This project will enable us to reach our goal of moving 35% of containerised cargo via on-dock rail this decade. It will also support our long-range ambition to eventually move 50% of our goods directly from terminals by train.”
