The new facility is set to more than double the size of the existing Pier B rail yard from 82 acres to 171 acres and more than triple the volume of on-dock rail cargo the port can handle annually, from 1.5 million TEU to 4.7 million TEU.

The yard will also feature a depot for fuelling and servicing up to 30 locomotives at the same time and a full-service staging area to assemble and break down trains up to 10,000 feet long.

Approximately 25 per cent of the cargo that moves through the San Pedro Bay ports complex is destined for hubs like Chicago, Wichita, and Atlanta. On-dock rail is the best option for getting cargo to these inland destinations quickly, and longer trains streamline the process.

A single train travelling across the country is typically 2 miles long, said deputy chief harbour engineer Mark Erickson. "The new on-dock rail support facility is a game-changer that significantly increases our capacity to build and dispatch these long trains," he added.

Constructing the facility reportedly involves adding more than 130,000 feet of rail, quadrupling the number of tracks from 12 to 48, widening the rail bridge over the Dominguez Channel from two to three tracks, and reconfiguring and improving nearby Pico Avenue and Pier B Street.

The programme will be built through 10 projects, starting with the rail yard's East Expansion. The port plans to solicit bids for this first segment during the first quarter of 2024 and start construction in the fall. Before year's end, the port also expects to seek construction bids on the locomotive facility and then begin construction in 2025.

"We're eager to break ground and start laying new tracks for this transformative facility," said Long Beach Harbour Commission president Bobby Olvera Jr.

"Expanding and modernizing this rail yard allows our port to move more cargo faster, more efficiently and more safely to markets across the nation."