Port of Felixstowe expands rail facilities

The United Kingdom’s largest container port has commissioned two new Rail Mounted Gantry cranes at its North Rail Terminal.    The Port of Felixstowe will expand its rail facilities, having commissioned two new Rail Mounted Gantry (RMGs) cranes at its North Rail Terminal.
   The new RMGs are manufactured by Leibherr and have been co-financed by the European Union Trans-European Transport Network program. The port has a total of nine rail cranes and 16 tracks at its three terminals, making it the largest intermodal rail facility in the United Kingdom.
   Rail freight providers Freightliner, GB Railfreight and DB Schenker operate at the port, providing regular rail service from Felixstowe to Birmingham, Manchester, Trafford Park, Scunthorpe, Hams Hall, Daventry, Wakefield, Bristol, Doncaster, Ditton, Liverpool, Selby, Leeds, Tilbury, Teesport, Burton-on-Trent and Coatbridge.
   “The Port of Felixstowe already has greater rail capability than any other port in the UK,” Clemence Cheng, chief executive officer of the Port of Felixstowe, said in a statement. “In 2014, we handled 890,000 TEU at our three rail terminals on the 60 arrivals or departures we have every day. Volumes by rail are continuing to grow and are now over 20 percent higher than before we opened the North Rail Terminal in 2013.
   “The frequency of services we can offer makes rail a much more reliable and viable alternative to 17 destinations in the UK helping to reduce road congestion and allowing customers to strip carbon out of their supply chains,” added Cheng. “The new cranes will help us to move even greater volumes by rail in future.”