North Carolina holds ribbon cutting for transportation facility

© North Carolina DOT

A ribbon-cutting ceremony recently was held for the Carolina Connector intermodal transportation facility in Edgecombe County, N.C.

The 330-acre site will allow trucks to bring cargo containers to a rail yard built on CSX Corp.’s mainline to be transferred to trains for transport. Most of the container handling will be conducted remotely, with operators controlling the initial lift and final placement from inside the terminal building.

It also allows NC Ports to start the Wilmington Midwest Express, connecting Port of Wilmington customers with daily direct freight rail service to the Midwest.

“Millions of people live within 120 miles of this terminal,” Eric Boyette, North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) secretary, said. “The Carolina Connector will spur business development, divert thousands of trucks off highways and provide much-needed jobs in this fast-growing region.”

NCDOT invested $118 million for site development and road construction, and CSX invested $40 million. CSX will operate the facility.

Construction of the Carolina Connector began in 2019. It features three wide span, fully automated zero emission electric cranes with a lift capacity of 110,000 containers annually.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, CSX Corp. representatives, NCDOT leaders, and Carolinas Gateway Partnership representatives attended the ceremony.