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GPA board approves $19.7M for new inland terminal

[ July 26, 2016   //   ]

At its July board meeting, the Georgia Ports Authority approved a spending package of $19.7 million to construct the Appalachian Regional Port in Chatsworth, Murray County, Georgia.

The funds consist of $10 million from the state of Georgia and $9.7 million from the GPA. In addition, CSX is making off-site improvements to facilitate the new inland port. Murray County purchased the land at a cost of $700,000 and deeded the site to GPA. For the land purchase, $500,000 came from a state economic development grant and $200,000 from the Murray County Economic Development Authority.

“We would like to thank our Board of Directors, Governor Deal, the state of Georgia, Murray County and CSX Transportation for making this incredible partnership possible,” said Executive Director Griff Lynch. “The Appalachian Regional Port (ARP) will create a new gateway to the Port of Savannah for our customers serving Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky and beyond. We estimate the ARP will offset more than 350 truck miles per container, or close to 18 million miles every year.”

The new inland terminal is the second for the GPA and part of the “Network Georgia” program designed to create inland terminals throughout the state to reduce intermodal truck traffic and provide greater rail capacity to the Southeast U.S. and beyond.

The inland terminal in Chatsworth will be approximately 40 acres and be operated using highly efficient rubber-tired gantry cranes to move cargo to and from CSX trains. GPA expects construction to be complete in late summer, 2018.

“The GPA, the state of Georgia and our partners in the private sector are very focused on rail and road connections to and from our ports,” said GPA Board Chairman Jimmy Allgood. “Establishing these inland terminals will extend our rail advantage into a multi-state region, ease highway traffic congestion, and prepare Georgia’s ports for a new era of growth.”

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