Port enhances ExpressRail N.J. facility

Port enhances ExpressRail N.J. facility    The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said Wednesday that work had been completed on two major components of its ExpressRail intermodal rail project.
   Completion of a second lead track to the ExpressRail facility in Elizabeth will allow trains to arrive and depart simultaneously. In addition, construction was completed on a rail support facility along Corbin Street that will be able to handle four 10,000-foot trains daily. The port is also planning to build a “flyover” for trucks moving between its rail facility and container terminal in Port Newark to alleviate traffic congestion.
   The port expects completion of the two projects will attract new cargo and new services to the port, including to destinations less than 500 miles away. It said in anticipation of the capacity expansion, Norfolk Southern has developed a new direct service to Harrisburg and CSX will begin a new direct service to Buffalo at the end of this month.
   The port said increased rail shipments can also help improve air quality at the port, saying each container moving by rail eliminates about one and a half truck moves.
   During 2008, the Port of New York and New Jersey set a new record for its on-dock rail system, transporting 377,827 containers for the year, a 6 percent increase over 2007. But this year, the economic recession has resulted in a 16 percent decline in cargo volumes flowing through the port and a corresponding 21 percent drop in rail business.