CSX N. Baltimore Hub "Taking Shape"

[MSchwiebert]

http://sent-trib.com/trib/index.php?opt ... Itemid=115

From the 8/20/10 BG Sentinel- Tribune

CSX site to create thousands of jobs
Written by By PETER KUEBECK Sentinel Staff Writer
Friday, 20 August 2010 09:15


PERRYSBURG - The Northwest Ohio Intermodal Terminal in North Baltimore will feature impressive technology and is slated to help create thousands of jobs, according to Peter Craig, terminal superintendent with CSX Intermodal Terminals Inc.
He spoke at the August luncheon meeting of the Perrysburg Area Chamber of Commerce held Wednesday at the Carranor Hunt and Polo Club.
Craig described the $175 million facility as the "cornerstone" of the National Gateway, a public-private partnership noted on its Web site as "a double stack cleared, state-of-the-art rail corridor linking the East Coast's international deepwater ports and major consumption markets with the population and manufacturing centers of the Midwest." Work began on the project in 2009, and 210,000 man-hours have been expended on it thus far.
"We are on schedule for first quarter of 2011 to open the facility," explained Craig.
The North Baltimore terminal, which he said will be double the size of the company's next largest intermodal terminal, located in Chicago, will be the company's premier site, providing Chicago run-through service and improving routing efficiency.
"It all comes through Northwest Ohio. That's the key for us," Craig noted.
"The key for the Northwest Ohio facility is the technology," he later added.
Three of five planned wide-span cranes are already in place at the site; they will be the largest cranes at an intermodal facility in the U.S. and will handle moving boxes from rail cars to the terminal. Shuttle cars will move the containers to their stacked areas, and the site will feature more than 70,000 feet of processing tracks. All of the cranes and additional hardware should be up and in place by mid- to late-December.
Responding to questions from the audience, Craig noted that the facility can handle 12 to 14 trains each day, based on the current schedule, and can handle 700,000 containers in its first year. Two-hundred people will be working at the terminal, with inside and outside workers being direct CSX employees. There will also be vendors providing maintenance service and contractors for train fueling. He said that seven administrative positions have currently relocated to the area, four of whom live in Perrysburg.
Craig also confirmed some figures offered by Wood County Commissioner Tim Brown at the luncheon. The terminal is projected to generate 2,600 "spin-off" jobs over the next 10 years, and due to double-stacked trains - where containers are placed one on top of another - it is not anticipated that the terminal will cause a substantial increase in north-south train traffic or of trains coming into North Baltimore.

[Shorthaul]

The terminal is projected to generate 2,600 "spin-off" jobs over the next 10 years, and due to double-stacked trains - where containers are placed one on top of another - it is not anticipated that the terminal will cause a substantial increase in north-south train traffic or of trains coming into North Baltimore.

What are they talking about? It's not like the trains weren't double stacked beforehand. The trains will remain double stacked, and there WILL be an increase of traffic in the area (east-west.) Apparently they aren't aware that the Toledo Sub will see TOFC again either, although that only adds like 2 trains/day, right?

[sd70accsxt700]

Apparently they aren't aware that Detroit will see TOFC again either, although that only adds like 2 trains/day, right?

Unless I missed something where did you get that from? Last I knew North Baltimore was going to be container only. I also dont think because of New Boston, CSX in Detroit will all the sudden again become a TOFC facility. I should also say that I base this info from my train profiles, where only containers show for destinations for other railroads, and not trailers.

[bdconrail29]

I also confirmed what Matt is saying from Tom Dupee: containers only

[Shorthaul]

Apparently they aren't aware that Detroit will see TOFC again either, although that only adds like 2 trains/day, right?

Unless I missed something where did you get that from? Last I knew North Baltimore was going to be container only. I also dont think because of New Boston, CSX in Detroit will all the sudden again become a TOFC facility. I should also say that I base this info from my train profiles, where only containers show for destinations for other railroads, and not trailers.

Ok. I changed it a few seconds later, not realizing that anyone had seen it yet, because I was under that impression. I was wrong, somebody said trailers on the Toledo sub, but that was south, not north, of Deshler. I guess that was all speculation on another thread, which has not turned into reality.

[sd70accsxt700]

No problem. Most of the stuff I post about NB is pure speculation, as no one knows and the RR is not telling anyone. I just put two and two together, and come up with what is reasonable, like I said, no one knows yet. Hopefully it will become much more clearer soon as people will be needing to start making training runs to Buffalo (that is one of the few facts that are known) and other places we will work to.

[Shorthaul]

Digging it up again!!!
Any updates? Have I missed another thread on this???

[sd70accsxt700]

Nothing else much to report yet, other then the head of the terminal was visiting Willard the other day, and made the coment that he thought that hiring 50 trainmen was not enough. Also that he really does not know much yet, at leas that is what he said.

[MSchwiebert]

If what I am hearing about a "local" customer is correct, there will be at least 1 TOFC customer using the facility...

[CSX Q109]

I bet it will be UPS.

[JoJames]

If what I am hearing about a "local" customer is correct, there will be at least 1 TOFC customer using the facility...

Campbell Soup it would be.

[sd70accsxt700]

Well yesterday they ran a "test" train from 59th St. to the new yard. X90226, I thought it said 31 loads and 3 empties, but when we went by it was nothing like that. And not sure what this means, but there were at least 5 containers on chassie's. Train was set off on the 1000 mile inspection track, and ran power light to Willard.

[Typhoon]

Practice practice practice.......The equipment will be used by the crane operators to practice moving containers around.

[sd70accsxt700]

Anyone know, and maybe MDL (?) can chime in on this, is if a container is on a chassie, is that considered TOFC or COFC, in the "traditonal" sense of the terms. I guess what I am asking is if a container on a chassie would make a "place" a TOFC facility or just COFC.

[gridejq]

COFC facility only but a Container on a chasis is considered a TOFC in "normal" lingo but CSX uses TOFC and COFC as two different breakdowns. Look at Conrail and the TV trains or UP with their K, Z, and I trains. All have different breakdowns but they really all are broken into two different types....Containers and Truck Trailers.

[MSchwiebert]

Where do the "domestic" containers ie, Schneider & JB hunt fall? They're obviously boxes - but the customers are definetly "truck guys" and not shipping companies.
I can still see some TOFC traffic being handled through there as CSX did select N. Baltimore because they viewed the region as "underserved" from an intermodal perspective currently. Or to look at it another way, if UPS (for example) says "we'd like to send trailers from our Toledo sorting hub to Boston via rail from N. Baltimore - I don't think CSX is going to say "no"..

[sd70accsxt700]

Were not talking about the "who" of shipping the containers, just the containers themselves. Those fall into the COFC as they are "boxes" I was more asking if a "box" is still a "box" if it is on a chassie, or is it a "trailer" then or is it still a box. There will be the "proper" amount of everyones chassies to handel the incomming containers.

[sd70accsxt700]

COFC facility only but a Container on a chasis is considered a TOFC in "normal" lingo but CSX uses TOFC and COFC as two different breakdowns. Look at Conrail and the TV trains or UP with their K, Z, and I trains. All have different breakdowns but they really all are broken into two different types....Containers and Truck Trailers.

JQ looking at my paper work from last nights Q100, should answer this. My cover sheet from Bedford Park shows, one Little Ferry container and 35 trailers. If I go to the Train listing and Haz mat, Descriptions in the back of the profile, it shows one FSTU container on a NONZ chassie, so according to that containers on chassie, are considered COFC and not TOFC

Same thing in my Worchester block, I had a TTRX three pack, with Three NONZ chassies, and three UPSU containers, they also show on the cover sheet as three containers for Littl Ferry.

So applying this through common sense, its says that even on the test train (x902) they are considered Container On Flat Car, and not Trailer on Flat car. Only trailers with physicaly attached wheels are considered Trailers.

[gridejq]

Yep that was my thought as I said last night on the phone.....but its really more complicated then it should be

[sd70accsxt700]

Ok well I guess I was missunderstanding you then. Wow is missunderstanding really that long of a word?