Freight and Transportation Planning Workshop- Executive Summary

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Freight and Transportation Planning Workshop-
Executive Summary
Presented by the Federal Highway Administration
Date Location
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Workshop Outcomes

• Better understanding of the modes and
  stakeholders involved in freight transportation
• Better understanding of the trends affecting
  freight transportation and its impacts on your
  transportation system and communities
• Better understanding of the common issues that
  prevent freight from being fully incorporated in
  the planning process
• Resource packet to help guide freight planning
  efforts
• Data and funding sources
• Examples of successful programs and initiatives
• Links to other organizations

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How Does Freight Transportation Differ from
Passenger Transportation?

• Passenger Movements
• Movements often begin and end within the same
  jurisdiction
• Trip generation and attractionswell understood
  and predicted
• Plenty of publiclyavailable data
• Issues better understood by decision-makers and
  general public
• Less infrastructure impact
• Less intermodal in nature

• Freight Movements
• Complex chain of interregional or international
  trips
• Sensitive to market forces difficult to forecast
  demand
• Few sources of publiclyavailable data
• Private sector industry not always well
  understood
• Heavier vehicles have greater infrastructure
  impacts
• More intermodal

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Who are Freight Stakeholders?

• Public Sector
• Federal, state, local transportation planning
  agencies
• Economic development and trade organizations
• Federal, state, local law enforcement
• Private Sector
• Shippers and receivers of freight (businesses)
• Freight transportation service and logistics
  providers
• Owners and operators of freight facilities
• Neighborhoods and communities affected by
  freight transportation
• The general public

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Stakeholder PerspectivesState, MPO, Local Agency
Focus is Regional and Local Private Sector Focus
is Increasingly National and Global
Private Sector(Shippers, Carriers)
Global
National
Regional
Local
Public Sector(States, MPOs, local agencies)
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Importance of Freight PlanningTransportation
Investments Lead to Increased Productivity

• Florida
• Freight transportation investments generate a 35
  percent annual rate of return in terms of GSP
  growth
• Maryland
• Highway improvements responsible for 10 percent
  of states productivity growth 1982-1996
• Wisconsin
• Every 1 of highway investment leads to 2 of
  benefits to passengers 1 of benefits to freight
  movements

Sources Florida DOT Macroeconomics Study, 2002
Transportation Improvements Grow Wisconsins
Economy, 2003.
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Importance of Freight PlanningEfficient Freight
Transportation System Attracts New Businesses

• 88 percent of all new and expanded manufacturing
  facilities in Wisconsin chose to locate within 5
  miles of key highways

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Modes of Freight Transportation
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Modes of Freight TransportationFreight Service
Spectrum
Higher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. Service Cost Continuum. . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . .Lower
Air Truck Rail Water
Pipeline
1 - 10,000/lb.
3-10/lb.
1/2-1/lb.
Fastest, most reliable, most visible Lowest
weight, highest value, most time-sensitive cargo
Slower, less reliable, less visible Highest
weight, lowest value, least time-sensitive cargo
Fast, reliable, visible Range of weight and
value
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Freight Transportation System
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Freight Movements14 Billion Tons Valued at 11
Trillion in 1998
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Freight TrendsAnticipated Growth in Freight
Traffic
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Freight Growth ImpactsHighway Congestion
Impacts, 1998
Source CSI based on FHWA Freight Analysis
Framework Project and HPMS data
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Freight Growth ImpactsHighway Congestion
Impacts, 2020
Source CSI based on FHWA Freight Analysis
Framework Project and HPMS data
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Freight Growth ImpactsOther Impacts

• Transportation system impacts
• Intermodal access and capacity further strained
• Congestion reduces mobility for people and goods
• Economic impacts
• Congestion and delays lead to increasing costs
  for shippers and carriers
• Community impacts
• Increased truck idling and grade crossing delays
  lead to worsening air pollution

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Freight TrendsIncreased Emphasis on Security

• Post-September 11 cargo inspections more
  frequent and intensive, particularly for
  international shipments
• Increasing reliance on pre-clearance of known
  shippers and closer scrutiny of chains of
  custody
• Increasing use of ITS and other technologies to
  verify cargo, vehicle, driver

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Freight TrendsMany Agencies Involved in Freight
Security

• Transportation Agencies
• Transportation Security Administration
• Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
• State DOTs
• State Registries of Motor Vehicles

• Law Enforcement Agencies
• U.S. Customs
• INS
• Border Patrol
• DEA
• FBI
• U.S. Marshals
• USDA
• ATF
• Coast Guard

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Security Impacts

• Increased delay at border crossings and other
  gateways and along major trade corridors
• Uncertainty as to appropriate state and MPO role
  in addressing freight security
• Greater degree of coordination with law
  enforcement agencies
• Limited funding available for freight security
  efforts

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Freight TrendsEnvironmental Accountability

• Construction and expansion of freight facilities
  more politically and socially challenging
• Intermodal access often occurs through
  residential neighborhoods and town centers

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Freight TrendsEnvironmental Accountability

• Trucks account for over 50 percent of all NOx and
  Particulate Matter (PM-10) emissions
• Truck accident rates do not differ significantly
  from passenger car accidents, but have greater
  impacts
• Nearly 70 percent of transportation-related
  noise caused by trucktraffic

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Environmental Accountability Impacts

• Increased sensitivity at all levels of
  government to the environmental and community
  impacts of freight movements
• Greater emphasis on improving the efficiency of
  freight operations rather than expanding freight
  infrastructure

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Freight in the Planning ProcessGeneral
Transportation Planning Process
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Freight in the Planning ProcessChallenges

• Freight Goals and Objectives
• TEA-21 provides little specific guidance as to
  how or to what extent states and MPOs should
  consider freight interests
• Many state DOTs and MPOs only address freight
  generally in their long-range plans
• Freight planning at some states and MPOs is
  reactive rather than proactive
• Organization and Staff Resources
• Many state DOTs are organized modally, leading to
  fragmented freight planning
• Limited freight education and training available
  for technical staff and transportation
  decision-makers

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Freight in the Planning ProcessChallenges

• Inter- and Intra-Agency Coordination
• Intermodal freight improvement projects often
  involve several federal, state, and local
  agencies
• Freight movements often affect multiple MPOs,
  states, and countries and can require coordinated
  planning efforts
• Private Sector Participation
• Vastly different planning horizons
• Public sector generational
• Private sector quarterly
• Many potential private sector participants do not
  have the staff time or resources to fully commit
  to the process

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Freight in the Planning ProcessChallenges

• Freight Data and Analytical Tools
• Publicly available data often lack industry
  detail due to privacy concerns
• Privately-maintained commodity flow data sets
  often costly and require extensive analysis
• Funding
• Federal funding programs for multimodal and
  intermodal projects exist, but can be limited
• Some states and MPOs find it is difficult to
  justify spending money on projects that are
  perceived to benefit the private sector freight
  community

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Freight in the Planning ProcessChallenges

• Overall Planning and Programming
• Freight champions sometimes do not exist
• Freight projects compete with passenger projects
  for funding
• Freight specific evaluation criteria often do not
  exist
• Freight planning can occur outside the
  transportation planning process
• Earmarks
• Economic development activities
• Projects on privately owned and operated
  infrastructure

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Freight in the Planning ProcessFactors of
Success for Incorporating Freight

• Program or project champion
• High level champions can often raise awareness of
  importance of freight
• Education and outreach efforts
• To decision-makers and general public who may not
  realize the importance of integrating freight
  movements into the transportation planning
  process
• Some DOT and MPO professional staff lack
  knowledge and expertise in freight issues
• Intra- and inter-agency coordination
• Most freight projects involve several agencies
  both within and outside of transportation

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Freight in the Planning ProcessFactors of
Success for Incorporating Freight

• Freight data
• Good freight planning begins with good freight
  data
• Data can come from many different public and
  private sources
• Private sector involvement
• Private sector can often provide the background
  and expertise necessary to conduct effective
  freight planning
• Innovative project development and funding
  methods
• Freight improvement projects often do not fit
  neatly within existing funding categories or
  project development processes

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Questions and Discussion