Biggest British Multimodal Terminal Takes Shape As Tesco Opt For Rail Freight

UK – As we predicted in our article last month Tesco have confirmed they will commence operations in the second phase of the Daventry International Rail Freight Terminal (DIRFT II) shortly. The company already operate within the first stage in cooperation with their current freight and transport suppliers including Stobart. Rail freight facilities are operated at Daventry by several companies including Direct Rail Services (DRS) and Freightliner (UK) and it is home to distribution hubs for companies ranging from Royal Mail to Mothercare.

Phase two of the rail freight hub covers almost two million square feet but that pales in comparison with the proposed third phase which will include an entirely new intermodal terminal and covering an enormous seven and a half million square feet, establishing Daventry as the undisputed rail freight hub in the country.

Tesco, ever aware of their environmental credentials say that when up to speed the eight trains a day they hope to turn round will ensure they have taken a giant step toward their avowed intent to become a carbon neutral organisation before the century’s half way mark. Recently Britain’s bigger retailers have all been seen to make moves to both rail freight and water borne transport in a bid to cut emissions by removing trucks from the road for the longer sections of deliveries and collections.

Tony Fletcher, Regional corporate Affairs Manager at Tesco and who has seen the DIRFT II project develop said:

"Not only does the new site provide the space we need to support the future growth of our grocery range, it also delivers major environmental benefits due to its location and on-site rail infrastructure. It will significantly reduce the number of lorries on the roads, saving around 14 million road miles and 19,600 tonnes of CO2 emissions every year."

Photo:- A section of the DIRFT II development reproduced with permission of ProLogis