Tacoma intermodal rail yard, with Mount Rainier in the background
The Port of Tacoma’s intermodal rail volumes for the month of March were up 20 percent, compared to March 2009. The Port’s four intermodal rail yards handled a combined total of 30,716 lifts, and experienced increases in both international and domestic container volumes. This is the highest monthly intermodal volume at the Port in the last 18 months.
Two major factors are the Port’s intermodal rail incentive program, which encourages the use of rail for short-haul containers, and the new Union Pacific domestic service that is bringing new container volumes through the Port’s South Intermodal Rail Yard. Overall, the Port’s March year-to-date intermodal volumes are down about 2 percent from 2009.