Virginia port broke rail container record in 2013

The Port of Virginia set new container volume and rail cargo records in 2013. Container volume rose 5.4 percent to 1,274,911 and rail container volume climbed 11.7 percent to 430,894 compared with 2012 levels.

"The port has experienced double-digit rail growth in 11 of the last 14 months," said Rodney Oliver, interim executive director of the Virginia Port Authority, in a press release. "We finished 2013 with rail cargo representing 34 percent of the port's total container traffic, which, on a calendar-year basis, is the highest percentage in the port's history."

Overall, increased import and export volumes in 2013 helped the Norfolk port eclipse its annual record set in 2007 by 95,166 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) — or 4.5 percent — to 2,223,532 TEUs. On a year-over-year basis, total volume rose 5.6 percent last year. General cargo tonnage increased 7.5 percent to 18,840,303.

"Our growth in 2013 … is in addition to the 9.8 percent growth we achieved in 2012," said Oliver. "These totals demonstrate that there is a lot of confidence in the Port of Virginia."