Rail-Served Industrial Sites: Connecting North Carolina’s Southeast to Opportunity

In North Carolina's Southeast, the region's rail-served industrial sites give manufacturers, distributors and logistics companies a real alternative to trucking everything, one that works with an already strong highway and port network instead of competing against it.

Two Class I railroads, CSX and Norfolk Southern, run through the region, backed up by several short line railroads. Together they connect industrial properties here to major markets, distribution hubs and the deepwater ports of Wilmington and Morehead City.

Why Rail Still Matters

Trucks offer great flexibility, but they're not always the most efficient way to move heavy, bulky or high-volume goods over long distances. Companies with direct rail access can fold rail into their supply chain instead of leaning on trucking alone, hedging against rising freight costs and adding capacity without adding a fleet.

For that reason, rail access tends to come up earlier in the site selection conversation rather than later. A property with an existing rail spur, or at least the right-of-way to build one, can make the difference for a company planning a large manufacturing or distribution operation.

A few properties in the region show what that looks like in practice.

Sites Worth a Look

One of only 80 CSX certified sites nationwide, the Mid-Atlantic Industrial Rail Park in Brunswick County is a 1,100-acre North Carolina-certified megasite. Just 18 miles from the Port of Wilmington and directly across the highway from the 1,000-acre International Logistics Park, the Mid-Atlantic Industrial Rail Park offers a large, rail-served industrial property (CSX rail is adjacent to the industrial park), ideal for manufacturers with an international supply chain or who serve overseas markets.

In Wayne County, the ParkEast Industrial Park is a 148-acre Norfolk Southern Corporation certified REDI SITE, with a Norfolk Southern line running adjacent to the property and a proposed on-site rail spur designed to connect directly into the northern end of the site. It is about seven miles from I-795 and close to workforce training resources and an existing industrial base, useful considerations if hiring is as much a concern as shipping.

A joint effort by short line railroad Aberdeen Carolina and Western Railway (ACWR) and Montgomery County Economic Development was recently announced, Phase One of the new Candor Logistics Park in Candor, NC. Candor Logistics Park is a 30-acre transload and distribution operation capable of handling over 100 rail cars and multiple commodities, including fuels, food-grade products, plastic resins, and dry bulk commodities such as cement and lime. Two adjacent properties are available for industrial manufacturers and distributors requiring rail access to the national rail network. ACWR interchanges with main line carriers Norfolk Southern and CSX.

Rail Partners Growing the Product

Main line carriers CSX and Norfolk Southern are helping owners of industrial sites in North Carolina’s Southeast to become more marketable by making rail information easy to access. CSX’s Select Site program works with communities to gather metrics and other details, and identify top candidates for the program based on an evaluation of a wide range of site characteristics. The chosen sites are certified as premium rail-served sites, giving manufacturers confidence to move forward while helping communities translate readiness into real economic growth and job creation. Norfolk Southern has a similar program, REDI Sites, prioritizing high-potential locations for rail-served industrial growth.

The main line carriers are not the only ones prioritizing rail. Several short line railroads in North Carolina’s Southeast participate in local and state industrial site-readiness programs, showcasing certified sites on their individual websites. The North Carolina Railroad Company makes its own Build Ready Sites Program grants to communities to develop rail-served industrial sites throughout the state.

Rail is Part of a Bigger Picture

Rail is just one piece of what makes this region work for industry. Seven interstates, including I-40, I-95, I-73, I-74, I-795 and I-295, put more than half of the U.S. consumer market within reach. Add the deepwater ports at Wilmington and Morehead City, plus several commercial airports, and companies get real flexibility in how they move things: trucks for short hauls and last-mile delivery, rail for heavier or higher-volume freight, and ports for reaching international customers.

The question companies should be asking isn't whether a site has transportation access, since most do, on paper. The real question is whether that access can keep up as the company grows. In North Carolina's Southeast, the rail-served sites are built with a pro-growth answer in mind.