All aboard the $45M rail center in Sweetwater

SWEETWATER, NOLAN COUNTY – Burlington Northern and Santa Fe (BNSF) Railway has opened its new $45 million logistic center in the northwest side of the city.

BNSF invested $28 million to replace existing track and add 40,000 feet of new railroad track at the site. Fairmount Santrol and Cape and Son contributed a combined $17 million to the project, which will create 15 permanent jobs.

The 75-acre site can serve five unique industrial operations, each with its own unique rail access. Rail capabilities include:

•  a 100-car unit train sand terminal,
•  a 110-car unit train Ag (wheat and cotton seed) terminal,
•  a 90-car unit train aggregate terminal,
•  a 30-car dimensional transload site,
•  an expandable BNSF switch yard, and
•  a 5,000-foot track expansion by adjacent industry Sweetwater Switching Co LLC for transload.

Sweetwater’s economic development board spent $500,000 in tax dollars for two rail engines.

The center will alleviate tractor-trailer traffic in the area by using rail cars to transport some goods that would have been driven by truck, which is better for the environment and for public roads, according to Ken Becker, executive director of the Sweetwater Enterprise for Economic Development.

Read more at BusinessWire and the Abilene Reporter-News.
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