Port officials told JOC.com they aim to use the new CSX Transportation double-stack rail service to win importers and exporters using ports in other states.

It’s the first of what the small East Coast port hopes will be two new services coming to the gateway as ocean carriers and their alliances sort out port coverage this year.

CSX Transportation and the state’s port authority on Tuesday detailed two new projects there aimed at fueling more cargo through the ocean gateway and onto the rails, and vice versa.

Pressure is building on U.S. maritime regulators to quickly decide whether ports and container lines can hash out details on a strategy that could dramatically simplify exporters’ meeting the SOLAS container weight rule.

Because North Carolina said it’s been weighing containers to meet Occupational Safety and Health Administration rules, the decision to provide container weights to help shippers meet the International Maritime Organization’s new SOLAS rule does not represent a change in operating procedures.

The Port of Wilmington has joined the league of U.S. East Coast ports pouring millions into their harbors to prepare for the larger ships soon to be able to pass through an expanded Panama Canal. But, unlike its regional rivals, the North Carolina port isn't targeting the largest of the new mega-ships.

A proposed $272 million CSX Transportation intermodal hub would give shippers using the Port of Wilmington better access to the fast-growing markets of Charlotte, Raleigh and the Research Triangle, along with the entirety of the CSX network.

Wilmington port is on track for a record year in container volume, due in part to a slew of new services connecting North Carolina to Asian markets and some diversions from the U.S. West Coast.

North Carolina State Ports Authority has appointed Jeff Miles as acting executive director, effective immediately.

Thomas Bradshaw has been named executive director of the North Carolina State Ports Authority in addition to his current position as state logistics director.