Freight Rail Protects Delaware Roads and Bridges
With freight volumes increasing, highway congestion getting worse and not enough tax dollars to keep up with First State roadway repair needs, the benefits of shipping cargo by rail rather than road are clear. The Port of Wilmington is already the number one U.S. gateway for perishable cargo and it stands to see an uptick in freight movements with an expanded Panama Canal and more ships seeking East Coast delivery points. More of this cargo moving in and out of the Port by rail means fewer trucks and less damage to Delaware roads.
Delaware’s eight freight railroads operate over 243 miles of track and employ 194 in the First State.* It would have taken approximately 1.8 million additional truckloads to move the 31.7 million tons of freight that moved by rail in Delaware in 2014. Chemicals, nonmetallic minerals and petroleum comprise the majority of freight rail shipments beginning in Delaware. Petroleum and gas and motor vehicles and equipment are the largest rail imports to the state.
*2017 data
