Double Stack Railcars for Panama
July 27, 2001
An Intermarine heavy lift vessel loads in Port Arthur, Texas 60 double stack container rail platforms destined for the Panama Canal Railway Company. This shipment marks the final phase of a two-year project to build a new high-speed rail link parallel to the Panama Canal connecting the Hutchitson Terminal in Balboa with the MIT Terminal in Cristobal. The new rail service will carry containers double-stacked as well as passengers at an operating speed of 60 mph. In addition to these 60 railcars, Intermarine also transported six 120-ton locomotives and four executive passenger cars on a sister ship back in May.
The Panama Canal Railway Company is a joint venture of the Kansas City Southern Railway and Mi-Jack Products, the Chicago based maker of intermodal terminal equipment. In its initial phase of operation, up to 10 crossings will be made in each direction each day. The railroad will have an annual capacity for the movement of more than 500,000 containers between the two terminals. In addition, the trains will have passenger coaches for both executive and tourist classes. The executive cars, outfitted to resemble Europe's Orient Express, will primarily cater to the daily commuter traffic between Panama City and Cristobal.