Baltimore Congressional Delegation Announces Over $15 Million to Increase Capacity at Port of Baltimore through Infrastructure Improvements

Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Dutch Ruppersberger, John Sarbanes, Kweisi Mfume, and Anthony Brown (all D-Md.) announced $15,680,000 to improve rail infrastructure and safety at the Port of Baltimore. This federal funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (DOT-FRA) will support the construction of four new working rail tracks totaling 16,000 track feet and two crane rail beams totaling 7,000 linear feet within the Port of Baltimore's Seagirt Marine Terminal. The lawmakers hadurged Secretary Buttigieg to support this project which is part of the Port of Baltimore’s efforts to expand its capacity and further strengthen its role as a critical international gateway that connects the U.S. to global markets. 

“The Port of Baltimore is a powerful economic driver for the region and plays an important role in our country’s supply chain,” said the lawmakers. “Investing in our Port’s infrastructure ultimately means more Maryland jobs and a smoother transport of goods from ship to shelf. This project complements other initiatives at the Port that add capacity and improve efficiency. That’s why we supported this project, and why we worked to deliver these funds to the Port. We will keep pushing to provide federal investments to support the Port of Baltimore’s growth into the future.”

Complementing the construction of the Howard Street Tunnel Project, this rail project will modernize the terminal’s intermodal rail yard infrastructure to meet increased future demand as volume grows at the Port of Baltimore. To enhance productivity and provide for anticipated increased cargo volumes, this project will reconfigure the existing rails and contribute to efforts to improve air quality, increase safety, alleviate ongoing supply chain bottlenecks by shifting cargo from truck to rail, and convert existing diesel-fueled railyard equipment to electrified equipment.