Railex LLC (Riverhead, N.Y.) will spend $18 million to build a 200,000-sq.-ft. East Coast hub in Rotterdam, N.Y., 16 miles northwest of Albany. A division of AMPCO Distribution Services Management, LLC, Railex delivers fresh produce to grocery retailers on the East Coast.
The new Rotterdam facility represents a cooperative effort between Railex, Union Pacific Railroad and CSX Transportation. The refrigerated distribution facility will process inbound rail shipments arriving on a new cross-country freight train service. Funded by a $2.75 million grant from the State of New York, a new rail yard and extensive improvements to the existing rail infrastructure will be added to the Rotterdam Industrial Park to process the nearly mile long freight train that will arrive each week.
“We are very excited about this new service option for shippers of perishable goods, which will fill an existing transportation void by allowing for a fifth morning arrival from Washington State to the Northeast,” said Andy Pollak, President and CEO of Ampco.
Railex plans to process two, 55-car trains of fresh produce per week from the west coast into its new facility, the equivalent of 400 truckloads of produce. The distribution center is expected to employ 300 people.
Sources: Railex LLC, State of New York
