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Last week, representatives from the North Carolina State Ports Authority, North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) and Wilmington Terminal Railroad L.L.C. drove ceremonial golden spikes to mark the completion of a 5,300-foot siding at the Port of Wilmington.

The ports authority and NCDOT partnered with the railroad to construct the siding, which will improve the port’s rail traffic flow. The ports authority provided $600,000 and NCDOT contributed $200,000 for the project.

The siding will help expedite the building of westbound trains destined for CSX Transportation’s Davis Yard in Leland, minimize traffic disruptions at public grade crossings near the port and provide the railroad an area for building double-stack trains in the future, according to the authority.

“Until now, assembling outbound trains has been inefficient, with rail cars scattered throughout the port,” said Tom Eagar, the authority’s chief executive officer, in a prepared statement.

The siding will be owned by the authority and leased by the railroad, which operates and maintains more than 18 miles of mainline, yard and industrial track at the port.