Track Design & Rail Access

Plan the railroad before the site plan is locked.

B&H helps customers, developers, property owners, and project teams evaluate practical rail access before buildings, roads, utilities, loading areas, drainage, and construction decisions limit the options.

New industrial sidingsTrack reactivationExpansion & storage Transload & team trackOperating reviewNorfolk Southern at Painted Post
01 / ConceptConceptual alignmentConnection, length, curves, grade, loading position, and site fit.
02 / OperationsOperating reviewSwitching, capacity, spotting, loading, storage, and service requirements.
03 / EngineeringEngineering coordinationQualified professionals, surveys, railroad standards, and detailed design.
04 / ConstructionConstruction readinessScope, partners, schedule, access, inspection, connection, and service preparation.
Rail Access Begins Early

A siding is part of the operation—not an isolated line on a drawing.

A workable track plan must connect the railroad, facility, loading method, railcars, truck circulation, storage, and expected flow of material through the site. Each decision affects the others.

B&H can help define the operating questions, review early concepts, identify potential constraints, and coordinate with qualified engineers, contractors, utilities, property owners, and development partners.

The most valuable time to involve B&H is before the building footprint, roadway, stormwater system, utilities, loading areas, and future expansion corridors are finalized.
Project Path

Move from an early idea to a constructible rail-access plan.

The exact sequence varies by property and project, but the same core freight, geometry, operating, engineering, and construction questions must be answered.

01Define

Begin with the freight and operating need.

The track exists to support a specific movement and facility operation.

  • Commodity and annual carload volume
  • Origin, destination, and connecting carrier
  • Railcar type, length, weight, and handling
  • Loading, storage, service, and growth expectations
02Screen

Screen the connection, property, and constraints.

Determine whether the site can reasonably connect to B&H and still support the rest of the facility.

  • Potential connection point and ownership
  • Available rail corridor and property limits
  • Grade, curvature, crossings, and drainage
  • Roads, utilities, environmental, and permitting issues
03Concept

Develop a practical operating concept.

Test the relationship between the turnout, track length, loading area, car capacity, truck flow, and switching movements.

  • Preliminary alignment and track lengths
  • Turnout, derail, clearance, and end-of-track concepts
  • Loading, runaround, storage, and expansion needs
  • Preliminary scope and budget assumptions
04Engineer

Advance the concept through qualified engineering.

Final design requires survey, drainage, geometry, materials, construction documents, and railroad review.

  • Qualified engineering consultant
  • Survey, grading, drainage, structural, and utilities
  • B&H standards and operating review
  • Agreements, permits, insurance, and construction planning
05Build & Activate

Construct, inspect, connect, and prepare for service.

Construction and startup must be coordinated around railroad access, protection, inspection, customer readiness, and the service plan.

  • Qualified contractor and approved materials
  • Railroad protection, access, and inspection
  • Connection and facility readiness
  • Final acceptance, agreements, billing, and service preparation
What We Review

The track must work geometrically, operationally, and commercially.

A strong concept tests the complete operation—not only whether track can physically reach the property.

01

Connection point

Existing B&H track, turnout location, ownership, access, main-track impacts, and connection requirements.

02

Alignment & curvature

Track routing, usable tangent length, curve locations, railcar compatibility, and property constraints.

03

Grade & drainage

Vertical profile, car securement, loading requirements, earthwork, drainage, and long-term site resilience.

04

Clearances

Buildings, roads, utilities, loading systems, adjacent tracks, employee access, and equipment envelopes.

05

Switching movements

How cars enter, exit, are spotted, pulled, stored, and handled without disrupting B&H or the customer operation.

06

Capacity

Current car count, service frequency, storage needs, growth expectations, and future track additions.

07

Loading & truck flow

Pads, pits, conveyors, docks, scales, staging, turning movements, warehousing, and material handling.

08

Construction & approvals

Engineering, permits, agreements, insurance, access, contractor qualifications, inspection, and acceptance.

B&H railroad track and industrial corridor
Start With the Complete Operation

A site can have rail nearby and still be difficult to serve.

Distance from the railroad is only one factor. The connection may require difficult curvature, excessive grade, property rights, road crossings, drainage work, utility relocation, or switching movements that the site cannot support.

Preserve a workable rail corridorReserve enough width and length for the turnout, curves, tangent track, and clearances.
Protect loading & switching spaceAllow cars to be placed, worked, secured, and removed without disrupting the facility.
Coordinate roads, utilities & drainageAvoid conflicts that make later rail construction more expensive or impractical.
Plan for growthConsider additional car capacity, storage, loading positions, and future facility expansion.
Common Project Types

Different rail-access needs require different track concepts.

01

New industrial siding

Create direct B&H access for a new manufacturing, processing, distribution, agricultural, or bulk-handling facility.

02

Siding reactivation

Evaluate an existing or former industrial track for condition, access, geometry, switching, and return to service.

03

Expansion & storage

Add loading positions, storage tracks, runaround capability, staging, or capacity for future traffic growth.

04

Transload & team track

Develop shared or dedicated rail-to-truck access when the end customer does not have a private siding.

Designed to Work After Construction

The finished track must support the railroad, the customer, and the service plan.

A technically constructible track can still create operating problems if it does not provide enough capacity, safe access, suitable loading clearances, or practical switching movements.

Customer / Property Owner

Defines the business need.

Freight, facility, loading process, property, investment, operating requirements, and project timing.

B&H Rail

Reviews railroad and operating fit.

Connection, service, switching, capacity, standards, access, approvals, and preparation for service.

Qualified Engineer

Completes the detailed design.

Survey, track geometry, grading, drainage, structures, utilities, specifications, and construction documents.

Contractor & Partners

Deliver the project.

Cost, materials, construction, utilities, permits, funding, site work, railroad protection, and execution.

Start the Review

What should you send B&H?

A complete engineering package is not required for the first conversation. Share the best information currently available so the team can identify what should be studied next.

01LocationAddress, parcel, survey, aerial, property boundary, or conceptual site plan.
02FreightCommodity, origins, destinations, annual tons or carloads, and startup timing.
03EquipmentRailcar type, length, weight, ownership, loading, and unloading requirements.
04CapacityCars per shipment, spots required, storage, service frequency, and expected growth.
05FacilityBuilding, loading system, truck flow, storage, utilities, drainage, and expansion needs.
06ScheduleSite control, engineering stage, funding, permitting, construction, and desired service start.
Important design and approval note.
B&H may provide early railroad review, operating input, conceptual coordination, and project guidance. Conceptual layouts and preliminary observations are not final engineering documents. Detailed design must be completed by appropriately qualified professionals and remains subject to B&H standards, applicable requirements, agreements, permits, construction requirements, inspection, and final railroad review and approval.
Bring B&H in Early

Have a siding, reactivation, expansion, or transload concept to review?

Share the proposed location, commodity, volume, railcar type, loading plan, available site information, and project schedule. B&H can help identify the first operating questions and the right next steps.