Detroit, MI

Detroit is a major inland intermodal hub because its intermodal container traffic sits at the intersection of major U.S. rail routes and the busiest commercial trade corridor between the United States and Canada. The region is served by Norfolk Southern, CSX, Canadian National, and CPKC, with major container activity centered around the Livernois intermodal complex and CN’s Detroit terminal. Even though Detroit is on the water, most of its container traffic arrives by rail. Its proximity to the international border and Detroit’s enormous automotive and manufacturing base creates a mix of international 20ft, 40ft, and 40ft high cube containers moving alongside domestic intermodal freight and cross-border truck traffic.

Detroit’s intermodal infrastructure is also undergoing a significant expansion. In 2026, Norfolk Southern converted its Livernois facility to fully ground-stacked container operations, increasing terminal capacity and making international container handling more efficient. A $112 million modernization project is adding new track, paving, and upgraded container-handling equipment and is expected to more than double the facility’s container-lift capacity. The combination of extensive rail connections, exceptionally heavy cross-border trade, and expanding terminal capacity makes Detroit an important market for marine container movement and used shipping-container availability. Detroit often has some of the lowest priced used shipping containers of any non-coastal intermodal hub.