Port of Cleveland hopes rail loop boosts business

CLEVELAND - A new, $4.5 million rail loop linking the Port of Cleveland with main lines nearby is expected to enable faster, more efficient movement of cargo from the site.

The Plain Dealer reports the rail loop is considered a key new capability for the first major U.S. port that ocean freighters reach while sailing from the St. Lawrence Seaway into the Great Lakes. The railroad cars generally can carry more cargo and take it further than the trucks that typically move smaller loads to local destinations, such as northeast Ohio factories.

The vice president of maritime logistics says the port is trying to sell shippers on the idea that they can drop off cargo in Cleveland to be transported by rail instead of sailing further into the Great Lakes.