I was reading in another thread where a gentlemen was stating that the arrival of his Prius to his dealership is delayed due to a backlog in Memphis. Is there actually a port in Memphis, TN?
Are you asking if there is a Port in TN that is large enough to handle the ocean going car shipping vessels? I assume that this is a joke? I would imagine that there may be a large lot somewhere that can store a few hundred cars, but a Port of that size would seem impossible to me.
Not an actual cargo ship port as this would be a challenge trying to float up the MS river! I should have said, "Some sort of distribution center".
This is a very sketchy outline, but hopefully it will help here. In the past, maybe 30 yrs ago, trucking companies and even railroads were experiencing major delays/conjestion in delivering cargo to ocean terminals at port cities. Part of the problem, especially for incoming cargo -- almost exclusively in containers with the obvious exception of automobiles -- was "clearing customs." That is having the cargo passed by U.S. Customs. And of course, time is money!! These three parties, trucking companies, railroads, and Customs developed a system whereby containerized cargo could be cleared by Customs at "inland ports." These can be quite large, say 300+ acres, including special impound and high security areas. Generally containerized cargo coming from or destined to inland destinations clears customs at the "ports," and are transported to/from the ocean ports by special high speed, dedicated rail service -- including Prii and other imported cars moving inland. There is still considerable trucking involvement; distribution/collection at the inland port, and a surprising amount of movement around the ocean port. And some precentage of the containerized cargo is handled directly at the port for nearby distribution areas -- think NY and LA. Very general I know, but I hopes this helps.
Amarillo Globe-News: Texas News: Toyota, railroad discuss proposed Bexar plant 12/15/02 " San Antonio could lose the plant if Toyota can't have access to more than one rail carrier. The automaker also is considering a site in West Memphis, Ark., which has access to Union Pacific and Burlington Northern rail lines."
