POLB Completes $93 Million Rail Project

By Mark Edward Nero

On Sept. 16, Port of Long Beach officials held a ceremony to celebrate completion of a $93 million rail project that the port says is vital for improving its efficiency and sustainability of cargo movement as shipment volumes increase.

The so-called “Green Port Gateway” project – funded in part with state and federal transportation dollars – was approved for construction in late 2012 and was completed earlier this year. The project realigned a critical rail pathway to relieve a bottleneck, allowing port terminals to increase their use of on-dock rail, decreasing truck traffic and air pollution. The upgrades will serve the port’s southeast portion, including the new Middle Harbor terminal.

Overall, nearly six miles of new track was laid. The work included adding a third rail line under Ocean Boulevard, along with new retaining walls, utility line modifications and roadway improvements. Every on-dock rail train eliminates up to 750 truck trips from regional roadways.

“The Green Port Gateway shows the Port of Long Beach’s commitment to moving trade in an environmentally responsible way,” Board of Harbor Commissioners President Lori Ann Guzmán said.

The California State Transportation Agency, California Transportation Commission and CalTrans helped with $23.1 million from the state’s trade corridor improvement fund. The U.S. Department of Transportation and the Maritime Administration assisted with $17 million.

Port of Long Beach CEO Jon Slangerup said the Green Port Gateway is a key part of building the “Port of the Future.”

“This project will enable us to reach our goal of moving 35 percent of containerized cargo via on-dock rail this decade,” Slangerup said. “It will also support our long-range ambition to eventually move 50 percent of our goods directly from terminals by train.”

The port is planning $1 billion in rail projects over the next decade as part of a broader modernization program to strengthen the Port’s competitiveness and reduce port-related impacts to the environment. Compared to trucks, trains emit a third fewer greenhouse gases.

Long Beach Receives $17 Million Federal Transportation Grant

The Port of Long Beach has received $17 million in grants from a federal transportation program to help fund the “Green Port Gateway,” a $60 million project to improve rail flow and the environment in and around the Port of Long Beach.

The Green Port Gateway project, which includes an Ocean Boulevard track realignment and construction of a Pier F rail support yard, will go out for bid this summer, with construction expected to begin in early 2013.

The project is expected to add a third rail line, which would help remove bottlenecks on the existing mainline track to allow port terminals to shift cargo from trucks to trains, which decreases local traffic congestion and air pollution. The improvements would also minimize derailments and optimize rail traffic flow to the waterfront terminals, according to the port.

The project would take an estimated 19 months to construct, during which about 340 new jobs would be created, according to the port.

The federal funds come from the US Department of Transportation’s Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery, or TIGER, program.

The Green Port Gateway project is the first of four rail projects expected to begin in the next year to promote more on-dock rail shipments, and is also part of the larger San Pedro Bay Ports Rail Enhancement Program, which involves several projects by the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, in conjunction with the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority.

Overall, the Port of Long Beach has more than $4.4 billion in capital improvement projects planned for the next 10 years. About $27 million has been secured for the Green Port Gateway project from the state’s Proposition 1B Trade Corridor Improvement Fund. The $17 million in TIGER funds brings the state and federal contributions to $44 million.

Port of Long Beach Receives $17 Million Rail Project Grant

The US Department of Transportation has awarded a $17 million grant to the Port of Long Beach to help fund a rail track improvement project that’s expected to allow for a shift of cargo carriage to trains from trucks.

As part of the $66 million Green Port Gateway, which is slated to begin construction in 2012, 16,400 new feet of track would be laid to relieve a rail chokepoint at the Ocean Boulevard overcrossing near the 710 Freeway, according to the port.

“This project will not only bring jobs, which are critical during these tough economic times, but also enhance both our region’s and the nation’s long-term economic competitiveness by improving the port’s rail system,” POLB Executive Director Chris Lytle said.

The gateway’s expected to eliminate about 2.3 million truck trips by 2035 from local roadways by improving rail transportation in and out of the port complex. The reduced truck trips would theoretically help alleviate traffic congestion and cut air pollution.

The project’s part of the larger San Pedro Bay Ports Rail Enhancement Program, which involves several inter-related projects by the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles and the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority.