Intermodal: Virginia

Virginia Upgrades Richmond-Hampton Roads Container Barge Service

Loading Virginia’s new Richmond Express container barge
Photo/Port of Virginia

The Port of Virginia has deployed a new barge in the James River container feeder service between its Hampton Roads and Richmond marine terminals via the James River. Named the Richmond Express, the barge left Norfolk February 5 on its first schedule sailing and arrived in Richmond the following day.

Richmond Express is 309 feet long, 54.5 feet wide, has a container carrying capacity of 125 forty-foot equivalent units (FEUs), and is reefer container capable. The port operates the barge under lease from a subsidiary of Norfolk Tug.

The port will install a "power-pack" in late 2017 or early 2018 to handle reefers units by "plug" versus individual gen-set units. Financing is provided by a $476,000 grant from the U.S. Maritime Administration’s Marine Highway Program.

The barge was towed from Indiana towed down the Mississippi to New Orleans, around the Florida Keys and up the U.S. East Coast to Virginia. The barge replaces was of a similar size that the port found difficult to load and unload because of its configuration.  

Currently, there are three nightly sailings a week between Richmond Marine Terminal (RMT and Norfolk Harbor.  Transit time is 12 hours. Through January of  the fiscal year that began last July 1 a total of 11,225 containers had been barged between the two ports, a 42 percent increase from the comparable period of FY 2015-16. The port says sailings can be added if needed.