Palmetto Railways Advances Camp Hall Industrial Project
Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor – Railway Age
Palmetto Railways is on track to complete this summer a 25-mile, $190 million industrial rail line project that will serve the Camp Hall Commerce Park and other developable properties in Berkeley County, S.C., and connect with CSX.
The Class III, a division of the South Carolina Department of Commerce and Railway Age’s 2015 Short Line of the Year, will own and operate the line, which has been under phased construction since 2024.
The project is needed to support economic development and to provide rail access for Volvo Cars, as well as an alternate means of freight transportation for all tenants of the 6,800-plus acre Camp Hall Commerce Park, according to Palmetto Railways. In addition to offering an interchange with CSX, the project will also allow for connectivity with the Port of Charleston.
“Starting back in 2022, The Camp Hall Industrial Park and its biggest tenant, Volvo, sought to connect to the port and the larger railway system,” The Berkeley Independent reported April 3. “So the S.C. Commerce Department included an incentive plan to build 25 miles of track through wetlands, woodlands and some rural neighborhoods in Berkeley County. The $190-million project runs from Ridgeville to Cross and includes a canal bridge that is almost done.”
According to the weekly newspaper, the project is 75% complete.
“We are anticipating being completed by the end of summer,” Palmetto Railways President and CEO Patrick McCrory told The Berkeley Independent. “I can go ahead and say August of this year. We’re at the phase where the last 25% will move very fast.”
The project “will serve the existing Volvo Cars facility that is operating today,” McCrory continued. “For the foreseeable future, we won’t see more than one train. There will be minimum volume to start, but it will climb as it grows.”
NARSTCO last month told Railway Age that AREMA Committee 1 members recently toured the Camp Hall project in partnership with Palmetto Railways. “The new industrial rail line serving Camp Hall Commerce Park in Berkeley County, S.C., includes 23 miles of NARSTCO steel ties and turnouts and will provide a key connection to the statewide rail network,” the supplier said. According to NARSTCO General Manager Kristin Ward, projects like Camp Hall demonstrate how modern rail infrastructure can deliver durability and sustainability at scale. “These kinds of developments show how lifecycle-focused materials can support growing freight demand while maintaining long-term reliability,” she told Railway Age.
