Prince Rupert container scheme progresses

This is the single largest contract so far for Phase 1 of the port authority’s Fairview Container Terminal Project. Phase 1 will create a facility capable of handling 500,000 teu annually. The terminal is designed to be 98% marine-to-rail intermodal, virtually eliminating the need for trucks.

The work – including preparing the site, replacing pavement and reconstructing the current facility to accommodate a container yard, rail track and gantry-moving cranes – is due for completion in July 2007.

The current terminal was built in the 1970s and was designed to carry moderate weights such as pallets of lumber. The new terminal will have double the weight-bearing load of 1,000 lb per square foot, together with storage for nearly 10,000 stacked teu containers, 17,000 ft of rail track and three rail-mounted super post-Panamax cranes, each capable of lifting 66 tonnes.