Port of Virginia debuts on-dock rail yard

The Port of Virginia debuted a newly completed on-dock rail yard at the Virginia International Gateway (VIG) late last month, the same month the port posted its busiest May in port history.

The rail yard has nearly 20,000 feet of new track and is supported by four cantilever rail-mounted gantry cranes. CSX and Norfolk Southern Railway provide double-stack service to and from VIG.

"We are well-positioned to capture more rail cargo," said John Reinhart, the Virginia Port Authority's chief executive officer and executive director, in a press release. "Our rail reach into the Midwest is expanding and we are aggressively marketing our capabilities. It is realistic to expect that we will be moving 40 percent of our overall cargo volume by rail by 2022."

Last month, the port processed nearly 261,000 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs), marking the port's busiest May, port officials said. The month's activity follows a record set in April, when nearly 246,000 TEUs were processed.

"We have moved more than a half-million TEUs in two months and are providing a very high level of service and efficiency to the ocean carriers and cargo owners," Reinhart said.