Sometimes it’s better to just connect south of the border with Florida rather than waiting for Atlanta to do something.

Mark B. Solomon wrote for DCVelocity today, Florida East Coast to add Valdosta, Ga., to relay rail network, Expansion will take place early next year.

Florida East Coast Railway Co. (FEC) said today it would add Valdosta, Ga., to its so-called relay rail network, which allows truckers to drop off trailerloads with the FEC and have the railroad, rather than the truckers, transport the freight down the Florida peninsula to Miami. The expansion will take place early next year, the railroad said.

Jacksonville, Fla.-based FEC already operates such a service at Savannah, where truckers delivering loads originating in the Midwest and Southeast drop their loads with FEC at the Georgia city. FEC then trucks the trailer to its railhead in Jacksonville, where it is transloaded onto one of its trains for the 350-mile overnight trip to Miami. The trucker can then pick up a trailer in Savannah, a major manufacturing and distribution center, for the westbound return trip. Once the trailer is offloaded in Miami, FEC returns the empty equipment to Savannah.

Hm, you’d think the Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority (VLCIA) would be announcing something like this….

-jsq