b'18American Journal of Transportation ajot.com(SAVINGScontinued from page 17)officer,CarrieEvans,said the regional railroad operates incollaborationwithsteam-shiplinesinpositioningof equipmentandhandsoff boxes loaded with agricultural products to Union Pacific for export via West Coast ports.IowaInterstatehandles bothdomesticandinterna-tional containers and furnishes an increasingly valuable alter-nativetoI-80astrucking With the Port of Savannah furthering its position as a preferred gatewaycapacity tightens, she said.for imports and exports alike, containers filled with inbound consumer goodsWere more nimble and are joined by boxes carrying such recent cargo mix additions asreally engaged with the cus-outbound plastic resins originating from Gulf Coast refineries.(Photo credit:tomer,EvanstoldAJOT.Iowa Interstate Railroad Ltd. furnishes regional service between markets of Georgia Ports/Stephen morton) Were good at providing theChicago and Omaha, Nebraska.(Photo credit: Rafter VanDriessche) first-mile,last-mileservice,tionallyfocusedintermodalUP interchanges with Iowa (VALUEcontinued fromphis to Chicago and the Ohioas we get containers closer toservicethroughthenewlyNorthern with eastbound inter-page 12) River Valley. endmarkets,reducingdray- developedButlerIntermo- modalshipmentsfromthe drivenbyCOVID-relatedHowdoesMasonMegaage miles. dalTerminal,operatedbyports of Los Angeles and Long changes in the marketplace. Rail compare with other on- Another Iowa-based rail- WatcoCompaniesLLCinBeach, while the service helps Dr.WalterKemmsies,adock intermodal facilities? roadWaterloo-headquar- Shell Rock, Iowa. The serviceensureaconsistentsupplyof managing director at JLL, saysAt approximately 85 acres,tered Class III short line Iowapromotesacost-competitiveinternational containers in Cen-the previous concept of just- (VALUEcontinued onNorthern Railway Co.initi- solutionthatreduceslong- tral Iowa for export loads to the in-time delivery is giving waypage 27) ated in late 2019 an interna- haul truck miles. West Coast.tojust-in-case,orstocking enoughgoodsforpotential spikesindemand.Kemmsies notesthatthedaysofthin inventory levels are over.Thesetwoaspectsof e-commerce make it that much moreimportantforaportto deliverspeedtomarketand volume capacity.At Garden City Terminal, containersmovefromvessel discharge to rail in less than 24 hours. The new space coming online with Mason Mega Rail will enhance that cargo fluidity.Savannahs location as the most westerly major port on the U.S. East Coast, centrally located within the Southeast, meansGPAalreadydelivers unmatchedspeedtomarket. WithMasonMegaRail comingintoplay,Georgia Ports is further strengthening its position.Populationcenterstra-ditionally have been the first choice for e-commerce ware-houses.Buthigh-population regions are also increasingly in demand, and that is where Savannah shines. The city is in the heart of the Southeast, with quick reach to Atlanta, Mem-phis, Jacksonville, Orlando and other markets.As North Americas single largest container terminal, fea-turing daily rail departures on CSXandNorfolkSouthern, SavannahsGardenCityTer-minal can easily handle e-com-merce demands.HowwillMasonMega Rail extend the Port of Savan-nahs direct rail reach farther inland?The new rail infrastructure willenableSavannahstwo ClassIrailprovidersCSX andNorfolkSouthernto build and receive 10,000-foot-longtrainslessthan1,500 yards from our docks.Byloadingwholetrains for specific destinations, GPA will be able to deliver faster and more frequent rail service tomarketsalongtheMid-AmericanArcfromMem-'