The Port of Coos Bay has a big vision to make international shipping the heart of the south coast’s economic revival.

The Pacific Coast Intermodal Port, or PCIP, project would create a massive deep-water terminal where cargo ships drop off shipping containers up to 40 feet long, full of goods from around the globe.

But the Port needs more than $2 billion to bring the project to life. On Monday, the federal government agreed to pitch in the largest pool of funds yet at nearly $205 million. The money is for the Coos Bay Rail Line, which would carry the shipping containers from the port to market.

“It’s our first really large construction grant,” Melissa Cribbins, executive director for the PCIP project, told OPB. “The rail line is 111 miles from Coos Bay almost to Eugene — and, of course, it was built over 100 years ago. There’s been improvements done along the way, but there’s significant improvements needed in order to handle container volumes.”

International trade is a major pillar of Oregon’s current economy. In a typical year, the state exports more than $30 billion worth of goods, like computer chips, fertilizer and wheat, to global markets.

And in recent years, the state has imported more than $25 billion worth of goods from other countries. Imports include parts for the technology, automotive and construction industries, as well as consumer goods like furniture and toys. Many of those products go in and out of Oregon in large shipping containers.

Leaders both along the coast and in Salem hope that a container terminal in Coos Bay, which will take years and more funding before coming online, will help leverage that trade as an economic spark for the region.

The only major shipping container terminal in the state is in Portland, more than 200 miles from Coos Bay.

Cribbins said the proposed Coos Bay terminal is already well positioned for the project.

“This Port is only six miles to open ocean,” Cribbins said, “Which is an opportunity and a way to build a new Port without having to invest a ton in dredging, and without having to disturb a lot of sensitive ecological habitat because it is just six miles in a channel that has been dredged historically for years.”

Environmental advocates in Oregon have long opposed the act of dredging due to concerns about how it will affect wildlife. Opponents of the PCIP project instead want regional leaders to focus on industries like healthcare and tourism, rather than international trade.

Proponents point to the 2,500 permanent jobs and 2,500 temporary construction jobs the project could bring to the area. At around 15,000 residents, Coos Bay is the largest city on the Oregon coast in a county of just over 60,000 people. Coos County’s unemployment rate is hovering around 5.6%, slightly above the state average of 5%.

Beyond the potential jobs, proponents hope the project will usher in a wave of investment and development to grow economic opportunities in the region, which has never fully bounced back from timber’s decline.

“PCIP will create good-paying jobs, strengthen our state’s supply chains, and unlock new opportunities for trade and industry,” Gov. Tina Kotek, who is running for reelection, said in an emailed statement about the federal funding. “This investment, building on previous state support, will deliver lasting prosperity that builds stronger communities for generations to come.”

Before the U.S. Department of Transportation award for the rail line, the PCIP project had garnered around $70 million in previous federal funding through four different grant programs. The state of Oregon has kicked in another $160 million. NorthPoint Development, a private company that would operate the shipping container terminal, has put up a $25 million investment in the project.

Cribbins said it takes a long time, and a lot of funding sources, to complete a large infrastructure project like this one.

Next steps include selecting contractors to help with the lengthy permitting and review process. Proposals from contractors are due Oct. 28. After that, the project will go through environmental reviews and receive public comment.

Despite the challenges, though, Cribbins said this project is desperately needed.

Cribbins went to high school in Coos Bay as timber jobs fled the state. She describes watching mill closures that forced people out of work. She recalls the ripple effect of people leaving the community, and schools and businesses closing.

Cribbins herself left for a period of time and obtained a law degree before moving back to the area to raise her family.

“It’s a tremendous opportunity for our economy,” said Cribbins, who served as a Coos County commissioner before taking over the PCIP project. “And a chance to bring, honestly, some of those middle class families back with good wage jobs and benefits and an opportunity to raise their kids here.”

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2026/10/20/coos-bay-oregon-port-rail-line-transportation/