Before the year is over, Union Pacific will launch an electric truck pilot program at the Intermodal Container Transfer Facility it operates outside the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. The railroad will also conduct a feasibility study to explore the prospect of a maglev system to haul containers between the docks and the ICTF.
UP officials announced the environmental initiatives at a Wednesday evening meeting of the ICTF Joint Powers Authority. For the first time in months, what the railroad had to say was music to ears of board members who have been hammering UP for failing to address pollution related to the trucking component of its proposal to expand the facility.
"We listened to you very carefully at the last meeting," said Barry Michaels, vice president of UP's premium operations.
"Obviously I'm pleased," said JPA Chairman S. David Freeman, president of the L.A. Harbor Commission and a huge proponent of both electric trucks and a zero-emissions container system.
Estimated at $400 million, UP's expansion plan calls for doubling the volume of containers it handles to accommodate 1.5 million (2.8 million TEUs) by 2025 while shrinking its footprint from 233 to 177 acres. If all goes according to plan, consultants will kick off the formal environmental review process by issuing a notice of preparation by the end of this month and circulating a draft EIR in March. UP officials say the project will reduce emissions from the rail yard by 74 percent.
UP officials said they are advancing the electric truck pilot and the maglev study based on feedback from more than 100 residents, port officials, educators, elected officials, business leaders and representatives of environmental and community organizations. While neither hinges on approval of the proposed expansion, the motivation to pursue them does. UP won't be able to expand and modernize the 25-year old rail facility with the JPA's approval, and the JPA -- which leases the site to UP -- won't give it if the project doesn't substantially reduce pollution associated with the operation. The ICTF and its sister Dolores yard constitute the third most polluting rail yard in California, according to the state Air Resources Board.
On the electric truck project, UP has been in talks with Balqon Corp. - the one and only manufacturer of a heavy-duty electric drayage truck and the same company with whom the Port of L.A. has entered into a similar pilot program. The initiative is promising because the trucks exist and are due to receive certification from the U.S. Department of Transportation for on-road use within the next 60 days.
UP's electric truck pilot program will focus on performance of the vehicles in port drayage and yard hostling. As part of the pilot, UP plans to install a charging station at the ICTF. In a related move, UP will partner with the Port of L.A. on its electric truck pilot program. In April, the port approved a $5.38 million deal with Balqon to provide and test electric trucks and yard tractors. In exchange for investing in the technology, the port will receive a $1,000 royalty for every vehicle sold or leased to a third party.
On the maglev front, UP will work with two manufacturers - Skytech Transportation Inc. and American Maglev Technology - to explore the feasibility of an alternative container conveyance system. UP officials have yet to set specific timelines, but they hope to come up with a design for loading and unloading containers at either end of the system at some point in 2009. Michaels assured the JPA board there is keen interest in the private sector to invest in a pilot system.
During UP's presentation, Andy Perez, UP's director of port affairs, announced the railroad will adopt Silverado Park in Long Beach and donate $30,000 to Long Beach Midnight Basketball Program to rescue its 2008-09 season from city budget cuts. By growing its year-to-date community investments to more than $150,000 - up 63 percent from the previous year - the railroad is reinforcing the message that it is going to be a better neighbor than it has been in the past, officials said.
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