Construction has wrapped up on a new intermodal terminal in Kansas City, Mo. Opened July 16, Union Pacific’s (UP) 31st terminal serves both domestic and international containerized shipments of grains, consumer goods, refrigerated products, and auto parts in the Midwest region, and adds capacity to the railroad’s original Kansas City operation. UP held a ribbon-cutting celebration Aug. 7.
Located west of downtown on existing UP property (Armourdale Yard) and near several major highway and interstate arteries, the Kansas City Intermodal Terminal provides customers in the growing markets of Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, and Nebraska access to UP’s 23-state network, including ocean ports on the West Coast and the Gulf of Mexico, according to the railroad (see map above). It will “accommodate significant future expansion with growth in demand,” the railroad said during its October 2024 announcement of the terminal’s construction, and will “help to convert more truck traffic to rail, reduce congestion on the nation’s highways, and lower greenhouse gas emissions.”
The Kansas City Intermodal Terminal includes UP’s PGT gating system, which was developed in-house to scan a driver’s equipment and speed up the gating process, allowing truckers to quickly enter and exit the ramp, according to UP.
“This new terminal reflects our commitment to building for the future and providing our customers with convenient and cost-effective access to the U.S. supply chain,” UP Executive Vice President–Marketing and Sales Kenny Rocker said Aug. 7. “Our customers want faster, more reliable freight options and this terminal delivers.”
Last year, UP opened an intermodal terminal within its downtown Phoenix, Ariz.. rail yard, which Rocker reported offers regional shippers and receivers in Arizona “a fast, sustainable rail option to move product in international containers into and out of Southern California that is cost competitive and removes trucks from our nation’s congested highways.” UP also more recently brought intermodal terminals to Southern California and the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area, for instance. The Twin Cities Intermodal Terminal in Minneapolis saw 2024 volumes grow 94% over the prior-year period, UP reported in March.
UP on Aug. 7 also announced it will shift its Kansas City Intermodal Terminal domestic service from the Intermodal Container Transfer Facility terminal in Long Beach, Calif., to the City of Industry terminal in Southern California. Domestic units moving to the Kansas City Intermodal Terminal, it said, will now benefit from UP’s expedited premium network six days per week, offering a more than 25% faster journey and up to 25 hours in savings compared to current industry options, with just over 2.5 days transit. According to UP, making the change to City of Industry will complement the Kansas City Intermodal Terminal and allow for expanded market access, efficient drayage management and enhanced logistics planning. Units originating in Kansas City will continue to utilize the existing expedited premium train to the City of Industry terminal, it noted.
