BNSF Railway plans to invest more than $1.5 billion to construct a state-of-the-art master-planned rail facility in Southern California – and the first being developed by a Class 1 railroad. This facility will help reduce highway congestion, transform the regional economy, and unlock critical efficiencies to meet our nation’s supply chain demands.
Conceptual – Subject to Change
The Barstow International Gateway will be an approximately 4,500-acre new integrated rail facility on the west side of Barstow, consisting of a rail yard, intermodal facility and warehouses for transloading freight from international containers to domestic containers.
The facility will allow the direct transfer of containers from ships at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to trains for transport through the Alameda Corridor onto the BNSF mainline up to Barstow.
Once the containers reach the Barstow International Gateway, they will be processed at the facility using clean-energy powered cargo-handling equipment, and then staged and built into trains moving east via BNSF’s network across the nation. Westbound freight will similarly be processed at the facility to more efficiently bring trains to the ports and other California terminals.
Economy
Supply Chain
Environment
Community
Currently, most international cargo at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach arrives in 40-foot containers that are then trucked from the ports to warehouses in Los Angeles or the Inland Empire. Once the containers arrive at the warehouses, they are unloaded, sorted, and re-loaded onto 53-foot domestic containers that are either transported by truck to a railyard in Los Angeles, where they are transferred onto trains, or are simply trucked across the country. This process creates inefficiencies and unnecessary truck trips within the Los Angeles Basin and Inland Empire that can impact supply chain distribution, the environment, and communities surrounding ports and warehouses.
The Barstow International Gateway will allow cargo to be transported by rail directly from the ports through the Alameda Corridor to Barstow and processed efficiently between the intermodal rail facility and the on-site transload warehouse facilities, without generating additional on-road truck trips. The transload warehouses will expedite repackaging and processing of goods into domestic containers for further transport via rail across the country.
FAQs (pdf)
Every day, BNSF Railway employees in California help move the products and commodities that Americans need to live and prosper. We’re proud to be California’s freight rail partner and an important job creator in the communities we serve across our state network.
California
Employees
3,041
California
Payroll
$258+ Million
Average Railroad
Salary + Compensation
$132,000/Year
BNSF Railway safely and efficiently moves millions of carloads of freight through the state each year. Since 2014, we’ve invested more than $1 billion to maintain and expand our critical state network. This includes millions to maintain and upgrade our major rail yards and automotive and intermodal facilities.
Carloads Handled
in CA
3.9+ Million
Major CA
Rail Yards
13
Major CA Intermodal/
Automotive Facilities
8
2021 Employees: 3,000+
2021 Combined Payroll: $258M
Route Miles: 913
BNSF Railway is one of North America’s leading freight transportation companies. BNSF operates approximately 32,500 route miles of track in 28 states and also operates in three Canadian provinces.
BNSF’s shipments help feed, clothe, supply, and power American homes and businesses every day. BNSF and its employees have developed one of the most technologically advanced and efficient railroads in the industry. We work continuously to improve the value of the safety, service, energy, and environmental benefits we provide to our customers and the communities we serve.