NS expects 12,000 new carloads from on-line plants
Written by William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-ChiefNorfolk Southern assisted in new on-line plants and expansions in 2010 thatit anticipates will create 2,000 jobs in the railroad’s territory andeventually generate more than 132,000 carloads of new rail traffic annually.
“The energy sector again anchored our results during 2010,” said Newell Baker, assistant vice president industrial development. “Norfolk Southern assisted in the location or expansion of 32 energy-related facilities in 12 states across our service area. Biofuels production and distribution accounted for the lion’s share of energy projects, with nine new and expanded facilities that began to receive NS rail service in 2010. In addition, we are seeing the first fruits of traffic from Marcellus Shale gas exploration projects, and we expect this to be a strong subsector for us in the coming years.”
Norfolk Southern works with state and local economic development authorities on projects involving site location and development of infrastructure to connect customers to its rail system. It provides free plant location services, including industrial park planning, site layout, track design, and logistics assistance.
During the past 10 years, Norfolk Southern’s Industrial Development Department has participated in the location or expansion of 1,062 facilities, representing an investment of $24 billion and creating more than 45,000 customer jobs in the territory served by the railroad.
