Port Manatee, Regional Rail Ink Long-Term Agreement

Port Manatee has reached agreement for Regional Rail LLC to operate its seaport-owned short line railroad through at least 2036, with options through 2051, “advancing extended business opportunities for Manatee County’s rapidly growing seaport.”

Under an agreement to take effect Dec. 1, Port Manatee Railroad LLC is to be operated as a subsidiary of Kennett Square, Pa.-based Regional Rail, which already operates seven other U.S. short line railroads, including three others in Florida, with more than 550 total miles of track.

“Port Manatee, as Central and Southwest Florida’s preferred gateway for global commerce, enthusiastically welcomes this new, mutually beneficial relationship with Regional Rail,” said Reggie Bellamy, Chairman of the Manatee County Port Authority, which approved the agreement at its Oct. 21 meeting. “We anticipate enjoying many years of synergistic growth.”

Port Manatee Railroad, which began operation by the port in 1970 (the same year the seaport opened for business) encompasses more than seven miles of tracks directly connecting with a CSX main line. The short line operates two NRE N-Vironmotive 2GS-14B diesel-electric locomotives acquired in 2014, and can accommodate 300 railcars. A $2.5 million TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation covered most of the cost for the locomotives, with the Florida Department of Transportation and Port Manatee contributing about $264,000 each.

“Port Manatee is experiencing record growth, including a 53.3% rise in containerized cargo trade for the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, while reaching an all-time-high in total cargo tonnage,” said Port Manatee Executive Director Carlos Buqueras. “We envision collaborating with Regional Rail in increasing rail usage for current seaport customers and expanding rail service options to attract new customers and commodities to Port Manatee.”

“We are very proud and excited to have been chosen to be the new operator for the rail infrastructure within Port Manatee,” said Regional Rail President and CEO Al Sauer. “This operation is in close proximity to our existing Florida railroads, and we are looking forward to working with Port Manatee and CSX to strengthen and expand the rail service offerings to existing customers within Port Manatee and to attract new business to the port.”

Besides Port Manatee Railroad, Regional Rail’s Florida operations include the Florida Central, Florida Northern and Florida Midland railroads. Beyond Florida, Regional Rail operates Carolina Coastal Railway in North Carolina, Middletown & New Jersey Railroad in New York, Tyburn Railroad in Pennsylvania, and East Penn Railroad in Pennsylvania and Delaware.

Located “Where Tampa Bay Meets the Gulf of Mexico,” Port Manatee is the closest U.S. deepwater seaport to the expanded Panama Canal, with 10 40-foot-draft berths serving container, bulk, breakbulk, heavy-lift, project and general cargo customers. The facility describes itself as a “self-sustaining port that generates more than $3.9 billion in annual economic impacts while providing for more than 27,000 direct and indirect jobs, all without benefit of local property tax support.”