NORFOLK, Va., Feb. 2, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Norfolk Southern Corporation participated in the location of 67 new industries and the expansion of 28 existing industries along its rail lines in 2010.

New plants and expansions represented an investment of $2.5 billion by Norfolk Southern customers and are expected to create 2,000 jobs in the railroad's territory, eventually generating more than 132,000 carloads of new rail traffic annually.

Norfolk Southern assisted state and local government and economic development officials throughout 16 states in helping customers identify ideal locations for new and expanded facilities.

"The energy sector again anchored our results during 2010," said Newell Baker, assistant vice president industrial development. "Norfolk Southern assisted in the location or expansion of 32 energy-related facilities in 12 states across our service area. Biofuels production and distribution accounted for the lion's share of energy projects, with nine new and expanded facilities that began to receive NS rail service in 2010.  In addition, we are seeing the first fruits of traffic from Marcellus Shale gas exploration projects, and we expect this to be a strong subsector for us in the coming years."

The balance of other projects secured during 2010 was distributed among several of the broad product areas Norfolk Southern serves.

Norfolk Southern works with state and local economic development authorities on projects involving site location and development of infrastructure to connect customers to its rail system and provides free and confidential plant location services, including industrial park planning, site layout, track design, and logistics assistance. During the past 10 years, Norfolk Southern's Industrial Development Department has participated in the location or expansion of 1,062 facilities, representing an investment of $24 billion and creating more than 45,000 customer jobs in the territory served by the railroad.

Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) is one of the nation's premier transportation companies.  Its Norfolk Southern Railway subsidiary operates approximately 21,000 route miles in 22 states and the District of Columbia, serves every major container port in the eastern United States, and provides efficient connections to other rail carriers.  Norfolk Southern operates the most extensive intermodal network in the East and is a major transporter of coal and industrial products.

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SOURCE Norfolk Southern Corporation