Union Pacific’s new Phoenix Intermodal Terminal is officially open for business

Following its late November announcement, in which it rolled out plans to open up a Phoenix-based intermodal terminal, which will provide shippers with service between ocean ports in the Los Angeles basin and the Southwest, Omaha, Neb.-based Class I railroad carrier Union Pacific (UP) said this week said that the new terminal officially opened up on February 1.

Company officials said that this new Phoenix Intermodal Terminal offers up what the company called a “first of its kind intermodal service” between the Los Angeles basin and Phoenix, sourcing international shipping containers from the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach and also Union Pacific’s ICTF Intermodal Terminal.

UP added that this service provides a sustainable and efficient railroad option, which reduces emissions and removes trucks from congested highways in California and Arizona, noting that moving freight by train rather than trucks cuts down on greenhouse gas emissions by up to 75%.

Duncan & Son Lines, a family-owned logistics firm in Buckeye, Arizona, is providing the location’s drayage. Construction on the terminal which will continue throughout 2024, said UP, with the remaining scope including driveway striping, lighting, surface hardening and an office building.

“The opening of Union Pacific’s new Phoenix facility is an exciting opportunity that provides an unmatched international intermodal option for our shippers to reach the growing market in Arizona and surrounding areas,” said Kenny Rocker, Executive Vice President – Marketing and Sales for Union Pacific, in a statement. “This terminal demonstrates our ability to improve the utilization of an existing asset to generate growth and provide a faster speed to market for our customers.”

Union Pacific officials said that this new Phoenix-based intermodal terminal expands the company’s intermodal footprint, which it highlighted is the North America’s largest, coupled with the most coast-to-coast services.

In its fourth quarter earnings release, UP’s intermodal revenue fell 5% annually, to $1.185 billion, with total 2023 intermodal revenue off 12%, at $4.554 billion. Average revenue per intermodal car, for the third quarter, at $1,515, was down 9%, and was off 9%, for all of 2023, at $1,504.