Va. transportation and rail director announces departure
Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation Director Jennifer Mitchell will leave her post March 18 as she plans to take a new federal government job, Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s office announced Friday. Jennifer DeBruhl, who has served as the department’s chief of public transportation for more than five years, [...]
UNIS to add nearly 1M square feet near Port of Virginia
California-based third-party logistics company UNIS LLC plans to open two sites near the Port of Virginia next year, comprising nearly 1 million square feet. Industrial Realty Group LLC, which will construct the buildings, announced the project last week. It includes a 910,000-square-foot high volume, cross dock terminal in Suffolk and a 72,000-square-foot transload facility in […]
Rocket Lab USA picks Va. for rocket launch site and manufacturing facility
Rocket Lab USA Inc. has selected Wallops Island as the location for its launch site and a new manufacturing and assembly complex for its new Neutron rocket, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Monday. The move is expected to create as many as 250 jobs. Rocket Lab will launch Neutron from a new launch pad owned by […]
A sampling of Virginia’s major road projects
HAMPTON ROADS Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel Expansion Project Construction on the $3.8 billion Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel (HRBT) expansion — the largest highway construction project in Virginia’s history — began in October 2020. The project will widen the four-lane segments of the 9.9-mile Interstate 64 corridor in Norfolk [...]
Volkswagen to debut electric Microbus at SXSW
Herndon-based Volkswagen Group of America announced Wednesday that it would debut its electric bus during this year’s South by Southwest (SXSW) festival, which will be held March 11-20 in Austin, Texas. Designed to recall the iconic Type 2 Microbus introduced in 1967, the ID. Buzz is Volkswagen’s second noncommercial ele[...]
J.B. Hunt to acquire Bassett Furniture subsidiary for $87M
A subsidiary of Lowell, Arkansas-based transportation company J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire a subsidiary of Bassett-based home furniture manufacturer and marketer Bassett Furniture Industries Inc. for $87 million, the companies announced Monday. J.B. Hunt Transport Services�[...]
Elizabeth River Crossings announces CEO
Elizabeth River Crossings OpCo LLC (ERC) has promoted Anna Bonet to CEO, the company announced Wednesday. ERC finances, operates and maintains the Elizabeth River Tunnels from Portsmouth to Norfolk. Bonet joined ERC as deputy CEO in September 2021 and worked with former CEO David Sullivan, who announced his retirement last week.[...]
Wiedefeld announces retirement as Metro CEO
Paul J. Wiedefeld, the general manager and CEO of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, plans to retire in six months, the transit authority board chairman announced Tuesday. Wiedefeld was hired in November 2015 to lead the authority, which manages the Metrorail and Metrobus transportation systems in the Washington[...]
Elizabeth River Crossings CEO announces retirement
Elizabeth River Crossings OpCo LLC (ERC) CEO David Sullivan announced his retirement, effective Jan. 21. ERC finances, operates and maintains the Elizabeth River Tunnels. A new CEO will be named next week. ERC owners Abertis Infraestructuras S.A. and Manulife Investment Management named Sullivan CEO in January 2021. He had previ[...]
Fifth District economy has moderate growth, Fed says
The Federal Reserve’s Fifth District (including Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, West Virginia and Maryland) saw modest growth but was constrained by supply issues and labor shortages, according to the latest edition of the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book, released Wednesday. The Beige Book is published eight times pe[...]
Q&A: Quebec official discusses Va. trade mission
Quebec’s delegate general in New York, Martine Hébert, visited Virginia this week on a trip to strengthen economic relations between her province and the commonwealth. Appointed in August by Quebec Premier François Legault and based out of New York, Hébert is responsible for promoting the province’s economic interests in [...]
Trucking on: How truckers are battling historic labor shortage
RICHMOND — From hand sanitizer and vaccines to groceries and toilet paper, truck drivers are trucking through the COVID-19 pandemic despite a historic labor shortage. Many industries moved workers home during the start of the pandemic, but truckers worked “to meet the needs of this country.” “The trucking industry has st[...]