Rail operations at the Port of Felixstowe form an intrinsic part of the Container Division’s activities, and are seen as an increasingly important part of the Port’s business.

The Port of Felixstowe owns and operates two Rail Terminals, one adjacent to Trinity (North Terminal) and the other at Landguard (South Terminal). Both Rail Terminals are multi-user facilities, with open access to Train Operating Companies. Combined capacity at these facilities is currently 416,000 containers per annum.

Container volumes transported by rail have increased significantly in recent years. The Port saw record-breaking throughputs at the end of 2007, handing almost 9,000 containers per week. Rail volumes currently represent 23% of the Port’s UK domestic throughput and continue to grow. There are currently 51 services to and from the Port each day, operated by Freightliner Ltd, GB Railfreight Ltd and EWS Ltd. These trains link Felixstowe with the major markets of the UK, providing direct connections to Glasgow, Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, Cleveland, Birmingham, Cardiff, Doncaster, Tilbury, Selby, Ely, Hams Hall, Wakefield and Ditton (Widnes). There are indirect connections with a broad range of customers’ depots through onward transportation from these inland terminals.

Both the North and South Terminals operate on a two-shift/24-hour basis, from 07:00 hrs on Monday to 19:00 hrs on Saturday. The Terminals can also be operated in between these scheduled times, upon demand.

To support these operations, the Rail Division possess a wide range of equipment, including 6 rail-mounted gantry cranes, 4 reachstackers and two shunting locomotives, complemented by a number of internal movement vehicles.

The Port owns and maintains approximately six miles of rail track, incorporating sidings, cross-port track and a Branch Line linking the North Terminal to neighbouring Trimley.

The Port is committed to further increase the share of freight being transported by rail, and has made significant investments in recent years to achieve this aim. A new computer systems has been brought on line.The port has also introduced a new role, which controls the positioning and movements of trains both on the port as well as controlling the arrivals and departure of trains onto the Rail network. Both these initiatives have significantly improved productivity and operational monitoring. A New (3rd) Rail Terminal is planned on land already reclaimed at Trinity Terminal.

The Port is also proposing to dual a 41/4 mile stretch of the existing single-track Branch Line between Trimley Station and a point west of Levington Bridge. This capacity enhancement would allow up to 40 freight trains per day to run in each direction by the year 2020, and would help the newly-configured Port of Felixstowe to achieve a rail modal share of 26% – taking 500,000 lorry movements off the country’s busy road network each year.