(The following story by Carolyn Feibel appeared on the Houston Chronicle Copyright website on July 17, 2009.)
HOUSTON — Nissan will begin shipping vehicles through the Kansas City Southern Railway’s new distribution facility in Beasley, which abuts a recently reopened stretch of track, the railroad said today.
Cars coming by rail from the Nissan factory in Aguascalientes, Mexico will be moved to trucks for distribution in Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma.
Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics, a Nissan vendor, recommended the new distribution route shortly after KCSR re-opened a previously abandoned 90-mile track between Rosenberg and Victoria.
The refurbished track shortened the railroad’s route between Houston and Mexico by 67 miles.
Nissan will transport 10,000-20,000 vehicles a year from the new distribution facility, which is being developed jointly by the railroad and CenterPoint Properties. It is near U.S. 59 about 45 miles from downtown Houston.
“Two of the big reasons we picked this was the cost would be lower for Nissan and just as importantly, you reduce the transit time,” said Jonathan Spampinato, a spokesman for Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics.