Norfolk Southern News

Container vessel operations resumed at the Port of New Orleans on Tuesday, nine days after Hurricane Ida made landfall in southeast Louisiana as a category 4 storm.The first two ships worked at the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal were the MSC Charleston at New Orleans Terminal and the Hapag Lloyd CSL Manhattan at Ports America. Seacor’s container on barge service will be worked tonight by Ports America.“Our wharves are busy today, handling both container and breakbulk cargo vessels, and trains are moving,” said Brandy D.

William P. Doyle is the incoming Executive Director of the Maryland Port Administration. A former U.S. Federal Maritime Commissioner, Doyle currently serves as CEO & Executive Director of the Dredging Contractors of America – and the group's member companies have recently made a series of announcements to build new dredges of several types and sizes. We caught up with the incoming Port of Baltimore head to discuss his initial goals for the new role. How do you feel about being selected the head of MPA and Executive Director of the Port of Baltimore?I feel terrific.

The Port of Savannah is bringing online 400,000 TEUs of annual container capacity at just the time when many port customers are seeking new storage options."With slowing demand related to the coronavirus, port users need space to stage their cargo until that demand returns," said Georgia Ports Authority Executive Director Griff Lynch. "With these new container stack areas, Savannah is delivering the flexibility our customers need."GPA recently added container slots totaling nearly 5,000 TEUs of space to its operation.

Georgia Ports Authority (GPA) announced that the Port of Savannah moved a record 4.5 million twenty-foot equivalent container units in the fiscal year that ended June 30, an increase of more than 305,000 TEUs, or 7.3 percent.“Our ports are firing on all cylinders,” said Governor Brian Kemp. “This success is a testament to the men and women who work throughout our entire supply chain and make a difference for Georgia and the nation every day. Because of their commitment, our factories, farms and logistics providers are creating opportunity and prosperity in every corner of our state.”For the first time ever, GPA handled more than half a million container lifts to rail, growing that number by more than 72,000, or 16.6 percent.

For Indiana’s state-established, but autonomous Ports of Indiana, 2018 was a record setting year, both for system-wide numbers and among the three individual Ports. These consist of Burns Harbor, on Lake Erie; Jeffersonville, on the Ohio, across from Louisville, KY; and Mount Vernon, also on the Ohio River, about 140 miles downriver from Jeffersonville.Not only were actual numbers robust, but Port officials reported “unprecedented tonnage increases” within the three-port system.

As infrastructure expands to handle new business, the Port of Savannah moved more than 350,000 twenty-foot equivalent container units in December. Nine of the Georgia Ports Authority's 10 busiest months were in 2018. The Port of Savannah moved 4.35 million twenty-foot equivalent container units in Calendar Year 2018, its highest annual volume ever, and a 7.5 percent increase over 2017, according to a report from Georgia Ports Authority Executive Director Griff Lynch to the GPA Board Tuesday.

American transportation company Norfolk Southern has signed a deal with Kalmar, part of Cargotec, for supply of four Kalmar SmartPower rubber-tyred gantry cranes (RTGs) equipped with a suite of process automation solutions.According to a press release, the order was booked in Cargotec's 2018 Q4 order intake with delivery scheduled to be completed by the end of Q4 2019. Norfolk Southern Railway subsidiary operates approximately 19,500 route miles in 23 states, serves every major container ports in the eastern United States and provides efficient connections to other rail carriers. In addition to containers, the company is also a major transporter of coal, automotive products and industrial goods.

The Georgia Ports Authority achieved a 12 percent increase in containerized trade at the Port of Savannah in September, along with a 37.6 percent increase in roll-on/roll-off trade at the Port of Brunswick.“The impressive volumes moving through our deepwater terminals are related to our customers building inventory for the peak buying season,” said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. “We anticipate year-on-year growth to continue as we’re trending toward a strong fourth quarter of the calendar year.”Marking 23 consecutive months of growth, the Port of Savannah handled 364,090 twenty-foot equivalent container units last month, an increase of nearly 39,000 TEUs over September 2017. GPA ended the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2019 (July-September) with 1.1 million TEUs handled.

Great Lakes-St. Lawrence shipping continues to bounce back after a slow start. With strong tonnage numbers in July, particularly shipments of U.S. grain, liquid bulk and project cargo, the 2018 shipping season is right on par with the healthy statistics posted last year.Overall cargo shipments on the St. Lawrence Seaway between March 29 and July 31 totaled 16.5 million metric tons. Areas of strength included U.S. grain shipments totaling 888,000 metric tons, up 32 percent over last year. Liquid bulk shipments totaled 2.3 million metric tons, an increase of 25 percent.

The Georgia Ports Authority achieved 14 percent growth in March container volumes, moving 355,208 Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit containers. For the fiscal year to date (July-March), TEU container trade grew by 9 percent, or 255,786 additional units for a total of 3.08 million, a new record for Savannah. "Savannah's continued strength is a reflection of our customers' commitment, Georgia's leadership, and the many dedicated service providers, GPA employees and ILA members who come together every day to achieve great things," said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. "March marked our 17th consecutive month of business expansion thanks, in part…

The Ports of Indiana is a statewide port authority, established in 1963, which operates three ports: two on the Ohio River, one on Lake Michigan. Port officials refer to the three as “America’s Premier Inland Port System.” They cite location, location, location, providing access via two critical freight arteries – the Great Lakes and the Inland Waterway System and proximity to the world’s most productive industrial and agricultural regions. The Ports is the only statewide port authority in the Midwest.

The Alabama State Port Authority (ASPA) and APM Terminals boards of directors in separate actions have approved a $49.5 million expansion of the container facility at the Port of Mobile. The Port Authority and APM Terminals jointly will deliver a Phase 3 expansion that includes a dock extension and an additional 20 acres of improved yard to maintain excess capacity to accommodate new business opportunities. When completed, the project will accommodate an annual throughput capacity of 650,000 TEU. “The Phase 3 expansion enables us to stay well ahead of the growth pattern we’ve seen in the Port of Mobile, as well as add dock space to support the growing vessel sizes that are coming to the terminal.

Nearly 500 people descended upon the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis Nov. 16-17 during the 14th annual Indiana Logistics Summit to hear over 20 speakers discuss global logistics issues and their impacts on the regional economy. "Global Connections" was the theme and attendees heard how Québec's $9 billion maritime strategy will impact Indiana as well as how railroads are adjusting to the fossil fuel implosion. Dr. Robert E. Martínez, Vice President for Business Development and Real Estate for Norfolk Southern Corp., the fourth largest railroad in the U.S. with the most extensive intermodal network east of the Mississippi River, kicked off the conference with a keynote address dealing with the future of the rail industry. In ever-changing markets, Dr.

Governor Terry R. McAuliffe announced that The Port of Virginia will finalize the $217 million contract with Konecranes for that company to build and deliver 86 specialized cranes that will be at the center of the port’s expansion projects at Virginia International Gateway (VIG) and Norfolk International Terminals (NIT). The contract is the largest one-time order for automated stacking cranes (ASCs) in industry history. “The work on making The Port of Virginia the US East Coast’s leading gateway for world trade is truly underway,” McAuliffe said. At today’s regularly-scheduled meeting, the Virginia Port Authority Board of Commissioners ratified the deal with Konecranes.

Newly-elected Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb will provide special keynote remarks at next week's Indiana Logistics Summit. The two-day event is scheduled for Nov. 16-17 at the Indiana Convention Center and the Governor-elect will speak at 9 a.m. in the Sagamore Ballroom on Thursday, Nov. 17. Hosted by Ports of Indiana, Purdue University and Conexus Indiana, the Summit brings together over 350 executives from the logistics and advanced manufacturing sector to discuss critical issues facing all modes of transportation, and will also include 150 high school students participating in "Logistics U," a parallel program exploring 200 years of logistics in honor of Indiana's bicentennial.

Governor Terry R. McAuliffe on Wednesday announced that The Port of Virginia has signed a new, long-term lease for Virginia International Gateway (VIG) that clears the way for the port to begin work on doubling capacity at the deep-water container terminal. “This is an historic event for The Port of Virginia,” Gov. McAuliffe said. The new lease, which was negotiated during a two-year period, will give the port oversight of and operating rights at the terminal until 2065. Further, the lease allows the port to begin work on a $320 million project to build the terminal’s second phase; construction will begin this year. The lease is between the Virginia Port Authority (VPA) and Virginia International Gateway Inc.…

At the Georgia Ports Authority board meeting Monday, Executive Director Griff Lynch reported the GPA achieved an August record of 330,846 twenty-foot equivalent container units, a robust increase of 5 percent compared to August 2015. "August container unit volumes were the third highest in the Authority's history, behind April and May 2015 at the height of diverted cargo from the West Coast," Lynch said. Total cargo across all terminals reached 2.62 million tons in August, an increase of 117,470 tons, or 4.7 percent.

The Georgia Ports Authority has received a $44 million Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to increase rail capacity at the Port of Savannah. "I would like to thank the Georgia Congressional delegation, including Congressmen Buddy Carter and Rob Woodall, and Senators Johnny Isakson and David Perdue, for their dedicated support of this program," said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. "As the nation's fourth busiest container port, Savannah's continued rail expansion is a key component to freight mobility in this country. The $44 million award, made possible through the Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects (NSFHP) Program…

Norfolk Southern Railway has announced disappointing financial results, and a cost-cutting plan that could eliminate two thousand jobs over the next four years. Norfolk has assured shareholders that despite weak carload volume and tumbling intermodal traffic producing a double-digit profit loss, the railroad remains better on its own. The company has outlined plans to cut staff, close routes and mothball locomotives amid a series of measures aimed at cutting annual costs by $650m by 2020.

UPS, one of North America’s largest intermodal shippers, has told federal regulators that it is against Canadian Pacific Railway's (CP's) proposed acquisition of Norfolk Southern Corp. (NS). UPS' thumbs-down has dealt a severe blow to CP's $28 billion bid to acquire U.S. eastern railroad NS. UPS Inc. is the largest transport company in the U.S. and one of the nation's biggest users of intermodal services. UPS has asked the Surface Transportation Board (STB) to reject the proposal on grounds that it will lead to diminished service levels and higher costs. UPS also warned that the acquisition would result in a spree of rail-industry consolidation that would impair intermodal service reliability even more.

South Carolina Ports Authority announced plans to enhance international intermodal rail service between the Port of Charleston and the Charlotte Regional Intermodal Facility at the Charlotte Douglass International Airport. Effective March 12, the new two-day Norfolk Southern service will operate five days per week connecting Charleston and Charlotte using existing dedicated intermodal trains. Containers moving between Charleston and Charlotte will ride an existing Norfolk Southern overnight intermodal train between Charleston and Spartanburg, where they will connect to intermodal train service between Spartanburg and Charlotte. “This…

Diversified Port Holdings (“DPH”) announces the acquisition of Liberty Terminals based in Savannah, Georgia with additional operations in Charleston, South Carolina. Liberty Terminals will operate as Seaonus Stevedoring-Savannah LLC. The acquisition aligns Liberty and Seaonus’s vision, values, mission, and core competencies, enhancing the company’s future growth across a greater geographical market. Liberty Terminals operates on the oldest continuous maritime facility on the east coast. In 2008 the berth was refurbished with a $14 million dollar investment, creating a dynamic breakbulk facility with a 1300 ft. linear deep-water berth and a 100 ft. apron. Savannah for the past 20 years. The facility includes a 144,000 sqft. warehouse and off dock laydown areas serviced by CSX Rail.

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett is set to be a chief beneficiary of a bid by Senate Republicans to weaken new regulations to improve train safety in the $2.8 billion crude-by-rail industry, a key cog in the development of the vast North American shale oil fields. A series of oil train accidents, including the July 2013 explosion of a train carrying crude in Lac-Megantic, Quebec, that killed 47 people, led U.S. and Canadian regulators to announce sweeping safety rules in May. Among other things, U.S. oil trains are required to install new electronically controlled pneumatic (ECP) brakes. But in late June, the Republican-controlled Senate Commerce Committee approved a measure to drop that requirement, and order years of new research to confirm the safety benefits of ECP brakes.