SALT LAKE CITY — BNSF Railway, Patriot Rail, and the Utah Inland Port Authority held a grand opening ceremony on Thursday for the Class I railroad’s new intermodal facility in Salt Lake City.
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, legislative leaders, and public-private partners gathered to celebrate the milestone with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
“This new facility is an exciting opportunity to improve our capacity and efficiency as the industry’s intermodal leader, providing more flexible, competitive options for our customers,” BNSF Chief Marketing Officer Tom Williams said in a statement. “We are grateful for Patriot Rail and UIPA’s partnership, as this new facility will strengthen our supply chains from the West Coast to Utah and beyond.”
The service handles international containers for Mediterranean Shipping Co. and CMA CGM, linking the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach with Salt Lake City. The trains run over Union Pacific trackage rights from Northern California to Salt Lake City.
The 43-acre site, located 5 miles from Salt Lake City International Airport, supports BNSF’s new intermodal service between California and Salt Lake City. Patriot Rail operates the facility.
“This partnership reflects our shared commitment to smart, scalable infrastructure,” said Patriot Rail CEO Brandy Christian. “By working together with BNSF and UIPA, we’ve delivered a project that not only meets the demands of today’s economy but also positions Utah for long-term success in the global logistics arena.”
“This is a game changer for Utah’s economy,” said Abby Osborne, board chair for the Utah Inland Port Authority and chief of staff for the Utah House of Representatives. “By increasing intermodal capacity and introducing new competition, we’re unlocking more opportunity for Utah manufacturers, shippers, and communities. This expansion supports our broader vision to make Utah a national leader in resilient, efficient, and forward-thinking logistics.”
Congratulations BNSF, Savage, Patriot Rail, G& W, and Utah Rail on construction of the new facility. There’s only one way to deal with the height restriction BNSF is going to have to negotiate some trackage rights with Union Pacific because in order to reach Denver trains will have to go east on the transcon to Borie Junction or they’re going to have to go all the way down to Barstow run the engines around head across Arizona and tie into the joint line at Vaughn in New Mexico because of restrictions on Raton Pass. But one way or another UP and BNSF will get those containers to the East Coast and domestic containers in and out of the Salt Lake area.