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8/28/2023
The New Orleans Public Belt Railroad (NOPB) last week marked the completion of an expansion project designed to increase throughput in the New Orleans rail gateway.
Located along the Industrial Canal in New Orleans, the newly constructed France Road Rail Yard is expected to improve efficiency and increase NOPB’s capacity to switch, interchange and store rail cars — the facility now can accommodate an additional 220 cars, NOPB officials said in a press release.
"Increasing our storage capacity through the New Orleans freight gateway serves the dual benefit of relieving rail congestion and offering customers, railroad partners and the Port of New Orleans a significant competitive edge," said NOPB General Manager Tomeka Watson Bryant. "As we look to the future, we will continue to provide safe, efficient and environmentally sustainable rail service."
The France Road Rail Yard construction is part of the $18.2 million New Orleans Gateway Rail Fluidity and Capacity Improvements Project. Through this project, the NOPB also completed five new tracks and additional storage for 205 cars at the Kingfish Yard in Elmwood in 2020, and is expanding the Claiborne Yard near the St. Claude area, projected to be finished in June 2024.
Since the strategic alignment of the Port and NOPB in 2018, switching revenue has increased more than 20%. Along with overall safety and efficiency improvements, the NOPB’s operating income has increased nearly 300%. Additionally, recent similar capital storage projects have already increased storage revenue by more than $3 million annually.