Georgia Ports Authority Expands $134M Terminal, 95% Complete

The Georgia Ports Authority reports that construction of its $134 million Blue Ridge Connector inland terminal in Hall County, Georgia, is 95 percent complete. The facility is scheduled to begin operations in 2026. The project establishes a direct rail connection between northeast Georgia and the Port of Savannah.

Electrical power is scheduled for connection by the end of January, with commissioning of the terminal’s seven all-electric rubber tire gantry cranes set to begin in February. The new terminal will be serviced exclusively by Norfolk Southern Railway, providing access to the Port of Savannah’s two on-dock rail yards and its 39 weekly vessel calls.

The Blue Ridge Connector is designed to convert a 600-mile round-trip truck transport route into a single rail movement. This development occurs as the state of Georgia has proposed a separate $1.8 billion project to add express lanes to Interstate 75. According to the Association of American Railroads, U.S. intermodal rail volumes have recently recorded a 4.4 percent year-over-year increase.