BNSF Railway Company has opened its new Memphis intermodal facility, after a $200 million expansion and rebuilding.


Spanning 185 acres, the new facility features a streamlined automated gate system for trucks as they enter and exit the facility, which uses digital cameras to record images of containers, chassis and tractors. Drivers are also identified using a biometric system. According to BNSF, these enhancements have increased security and improved throughput. It has also reduced truck idling time and emissions by 50 percent.

Eight new wide-span, electric, rail-mounted gantry cranes will significantly reduce the number of hostler trucks needed to move containers within the yard, the company said.