Gov. Brian Kemp and officials cut a ribbon in front of a Norfolk Southern train at Gainesville Inland Port. — Gov. Brian Kemp and officials celebrate the Gainesville Inland Port’s grand opening on October 29, 2026. Photo: Georgia Ports Authority.

A $134 million rail terminal in Gainesville is giving Northeast Georgia businesses an alternative to hauling shipping containers all the way to Savannah by truck. The Georgia Ports Authority expects the inland port to shift 26,000 containers from road to rail during its first year.

Gov. Brian Kemp joined port and railroad officials for a grand-opening ceremony October 29. Freight operations at the Gainesville Inland Port began May 4, so the ribbon-cutting marked a public celebration of a terminal already handling cargo.

Norfolk Southern runs direct rail service between Gainesville and the Port of Savannah five days a week. For shippers in the region, that offers a substitute for a roughly 600-mile round trip by truck.

A shorter truck trip, with rail handling the distance

An inland port transfers containers between trucks and trains away from the coast. Trucks still carry freight between the Gainesville terminal and nearby businesses; the train handles the longer journey to or from Savannah.

That distinction matters for North Atlanta drivers. The project is intended to reduce long-distance truck travel through the region, rather than eliminate the local truck trips needed to deliver goods. The 26,000-container figure is the Ports Authority’s first-year forecast, not a count of containers already moved or a measured reduction in traffic.

The terminal serves North Georgia and the Carolinas. Imports moving through it include retail goods and manufacturing components, while exports include agricultural products, forest products and manufactured goods.

Room to grow beyond the first year

The 104-acre site can accommodate up to 200,000 container lifts annually at full ramp-up, according to Norfolk Southern. That capacity is substantially larger than the initial traffic projection.

The facility has truck access to I-85 and I-985, with truck gates open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday. Storage at the terminal also gives businesses somewhere to hold containers before collecting them.

The project included $4.8 million in Hall County road improvements funded by the Ports Authority. White Sulphur Road was rerouted to remove an at-grade railroad crossing and keep emergency vehicles from being delayed by trains; Cagle Road was resurfaced.

For manufacturers shipping overseas, Gainesville now offers a rail connection to Savannah’s network of 40 weekly ship calls. How much freight moves onto that connection will determine how much of the projected highway benefit follows.