Question About Norfolk Area

[NW Mailing List]

I think all of this is consistent with CSX's decision years ago to concentrate on making the Port of Baltimore their primary overseas shipping outlet, leaving Hampton Roads to Norfolk & Western, now NS.  Considering that Hampton Roads is a day closer to the rest of the world, I think CSX's decision was more a political one, made in conjunction with Maryland, Baltimore and the old business interests of the B&O crowd, than a good business one.

Sam Putney
  
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: NW Mailing List 
  To: NW Mailing List 
  Sent: Sunday, November 04, 2007 10:16 AM
  Subject: Re: Question About Norfolk Area


  To: nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org 
  Sent: Saturday, November 03, 2007 11:17 AM
  Subject: Question About Norfolk Area

  I just returned from 6 days in the Williamsburg, VA, Norfolk, Newport News area - saw many ocean going containers in the shipping areas. Saw a few trains going through Williamsburg on CSX but they were either coal trains going EB & hoppers going WB (& 2 daily Amtrac moves).

  Question - How do all of those containers get to & from the port (at Hampton Roads area)? Does NS move them ?

  (Found it interesting that I did not see any containers moving on CSX).

  Terry Marshall


  I have'nt seen a TOFC arrive at Newport News since the late 1970's. 

  I recall that with the formation of CSX in the early 1980's, the decision was made to route all of the trailer/container traffic over to Portsmouth, since there were fewer obstacles to prevent their movement. The Peninsula Sub has a lot of clearance issues with low overpasses and signal bridges along the former C&O to inhibit such movements. Much of the former C&O property downtown was sold off to Massey (now Pier IX) and Dominion Terminal Associates for their coal terminals, and the rest of the waterfront was sold to VA Port Authority. Pier IX and DTA store the coal on site, and dump it themselves. As a result, the CSX removed the 39th St coal storage yard since the coal would be dumped almost as soon as it arrived at NN, and is now barren. The other class yard around 25th St and the 23rd st terminal were sold to VDOT and now carries Interstate 664 through downtown Newport News. 

  There was some brief chatter locally, about two years ago, that a study was being made to resume container traffic to NN. However, with the recent opening on the new Maersk terminal in Portsmouth, and the other intermodal terminal project under construction on Craney Island, I can't see the CSX persuing the Peninsula Sub study any further at this time. That project would be beneficial for local residents since it would take some of the truck traffic off of the Bridge-Tunnels to Norfolk, but what does CSX and our Richmond lawmakers care? They don't have to drive it. VDOT's answer for TOFC is another Bridge-Tunnel crossing to Norfolk, which would primarily only serve the Intermodal Terminals, and increase truck traffic on our roads locally. In addition to clogging up our highways, now they want to add navigational hazards in our harbor. Either way, it's a catastrophy waiting to happen.

  Remember, the first word in Commonwealth of Virginia, is Common....

  Russell Underwood






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