Freight Forum

[ About The Freight Forum ] [ 2007 Activities ]
[ Freight Transportation Guidebook ] [ Report A Highway Safety Issue! ]

About The Freight Forum

Effective freight movement is a key component of the region’s economic competitiveness and the overall health and efficiency of our regional transportation system. SPC’s Freight Planning Program works with the freight community to coordinate strategies for the safe and efficient movement of goods to enhance the region’s economic vitality.

Partnerships among the different freight modes—air, rail, waterways and trucking—are crucial to the effective planning of freight transportation needs. To facilitate dialogue between the multiple modes, SPC hosts a Freight Forum where representatives of the various transportation modes are invited to present information on issues and opportunities relevant to their operations, to establish relationships with other freight interests in the region, and to learn about current and proposed SPC activities.

2008 Activities

In 2008, the Kiski Junction Railroad was awarded CMAQ funds to permit the extension of their Armstrong County rail line to the new Logansport mine portal, expanding the production capabilities of their operations while removing thousands of coal trucks from local roads.  Three other railroads and one industrial operator were awarded funds for diesel engine retrofits to reduce emissions at local switching yards. A similar engine retrofit initiative for tugboats operating on the local river system was also funded under the regional CMAQ Program.

SPC continues to work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Port of Pittsburgh Commission in the evaluation of the long term infrastructure needs of the inland navigation system as a member of the Inter-Agency Working Group for the Upper Ohio Navigation Study, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers sponsored infrastructure needs assessment of the locks and dams on the Ohio River in western Pennsylvania.  A major component of that Study is an assessment of the impact of lock closure, or catastrophic loss of pool, on the regional highway network, in the event that goods traditionally moved by river barge must be re-routed along the region’s highways. 

In 2008, SPC staff was invited to make a presentation on these regional activities to the National Association of Regional Councils (NARC) and the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) at their “Regional Partnering” Conference. 

In April 2008, SPC partnered with PennDOT District 11 on the development and execution of the First Annual PennDOT/Southwestern Pennsylvania Railroad Annual Meeting.  More than 30 railroad interests from around the region attended this unique event.   SPC was also a regular participant in the Allegheny County Airport Authority’s Air Cargo Task Force, a group that was successful in bringing a new cargo operator to Pittsburgh International Airport in 2008.

New regional partnerships were formed in 2008 with the addition of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP) to the Freight Forum.  Representing industrial properties in the region, NAIOP participation in the Freight Forum enhances communication between railroads and rail-served properties, helping to facilitate the development, redevelopment and preservation of these vital transportation linkages.

Promoting the preservation and enhancement of the Commonwealth’s rail infrastructure is a priority of the Pennsylvania Bureau of Rail Freight.  In 2008, SPC assisted the Bureau in the review of more than a dozen applications for rail development funding under the Rail Freight Assistance Program and the Technical Assistance Program (Capital Grant Program).  SPC was also a regular participant in the Pennsylvania Rail Freight Assistance Committee, which meets quarterly.

New initiatives in 2008 included the development of a regional Freight Analysis Framework, a tool through which national and interstate freight and goods movement data may be analyzed to provide specific data on the movement of goods by commodity, weight, value or mode into or through Southwestern Pennsylvania.

Other activities in 2008 included SPC’s participation in the Appalachian Regional Commission’s Network Appalachia initiative to assess the movement of goods to ocean ports from within the thirteen-state ARC region.  Through multi-state meetings, regional freight transportation needs and freight development opportunities were identified. 

One initiative of note that remains current as we enter 2009 is the National Gateway, the CSX proposal to provide doublestack rail clearance from the Midwest to the East Coast.  The proposal calls for the investment of millions of dollars in rail infrastructure in the SPC region, including the possible creation of a new intermodal yard for CSX.  SPC continues to work with CSX in the identification of infrastructure needs, opportunities for public-private funding partnerships, and the location of an intermodal yard in the region.

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Freight Transportation Guidebook

Every year, SPC, in cooperation with the Port of Pittsburgh Commission, publishes the Southwestern Pennsylvania Freight Transportation Guidebook. The Fourth Edition of the Guidebook is now available for download in PDF format.

Download the Guidebook (3.27 M)

To download the order form, you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed. If you don't have Acrobat Reader, it's available as a free download from Adobe.

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Please use this form to report any safety hazards for freight on the roads of our ten-county Southwestern Pennsylvania region. Safety hazards include but are not limited to: gravelly or overly narrow roads and berms, no berm at all, obstruction in lanes, and excessive wear or potholes.

Remember: all required fields are marked with an asterisk (*)!

For more information about the Freight Forum, contact Sara Walfoort at (412) 391-5590 x339 or e-mail swalfoort@spcregion.org.

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