Transportation Planning Capacity Building Program

- Peer Program Report -

Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission and
Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission
Peer-to-Peer Exchange

Freight and the Planning Process

I. Summary

This report summarizes the results of a Peer Exchange arranged under the auspices of the Transportation Planning Capacity Building (TPCB) Program, sponsored by the Federal Highways Administration (FHWA) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). The exchange provided an opportunity for freight planning professionals from metropolitan planning organizations (MPO), local and state governments, and representatives from the freight industry, to discuss notable practices of freight planning.

The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC) hosted the Peer Exchange. The objective of the Peer Exchange was to discuss the DVRPC experience with the Goods Movement Task Force, the F-TIP planning process, and the coordination between public and private sector agencies within the Philadelphia area, as well as to tour warehousing, distribution and intermodal facilities within the region. Lessons learned from the exchange included the advantages of frequent TIP updates and the value of public/private coordination in planning for freight movement, as evidenced by the Goods Movement Task Force. The Peer Exchange took place in Philadelphia, PA from July 8-9, 2003.

II. Background - Erika Witzke

Columbus, Ohio is located within 500 miles (a one-day truck trip) of 58 percent of the U.S. population and 50 percent of the Canadian population. Additionally, 61 percent of all U.S. manufacturing capacity and 80 percent of U.S. corporate headquarters are accessible via Columbus, OH. The economic climate in Central Ohio is well diversified with an industry mix representative of U.S. national headquarters for corporations such as Wal-Mart Distribution, FedEx Ground and The Limited, as well as Japanese and European companies. Columbus is also the third largest international importer.

The freight system within the Columbus region needs to be expanded within the existing freight movement framework in order to enhance existing access to various domestic and international markets. Columbus already boasts of two international airports, two Class 1 rail service providers and three intermodal rail yards. Rickenbacker Airport is the largest public airport in the U.S. that is dedicated exclusively to cargo. It contributes $1.8 billion/year of revenue to the Columbus economy. In addition, the Port of Columbus generates $1.9 billion/year to the economy. Already, an initiative to co-locate transportation resources with shipping choices through the formation of an "Advanced Logistics" Park has been proposed by the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce. The initiative proposes to redevelop existing industrial parks already within the vicinity of Rickenbacker airport for over 56 million square feet of development and the creation of 25,000 additional jobs.

A variety of current and projected freight-related trends suggest an increasing need for the central Ohio region to plan appropriately to meet and take advantage of the growing freight-related activity in the region. A study conducted by the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) on "Freight Impacts on Ohio's Roadway System" (June 2002) utilized the TRANSEARCH database to show that Ohio roads carry approximately seven percent of all US truck tonnage, making it 4th in the nation for inbound and outbound freight tonnage. TRANSEARCH also showed that Ohio roads carry 14 percent of the nation's truck value, making it 3rd in the nation for inbound and outbound value. Over 66 percent of the trips travel through the central Ohio region, with 33 percent of freight travel having either an origin or a destination within central Ohio. The study also found that the freight flows database could be linked to MORPC's travel demand model.

Source: "Freight Planning in Central Ohio" presentation by Erika Witzke, MORPC.

In the past, the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC) - the Columbus region's Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) - has limited freight planning activities to the collection and dissemination of freight data. Biannually, MORPC publishes a "Central Ohio Freight Fact Book" documenting freight flows through the region, existing infrastructure and planned improvements, as well as a prediction of the future freight picture. The MORPC freight program, however, is now expanding into a comprehensive program to better address the expanding economy and increasing just-in-time delivery needs of the communities served by Columbus

MORPC has attempted to bring various partners and stakeholders to the table as it establishes a freight-planning framework. Since 2000, MORPC has provided the opportunity for the planning and policy community to have "behind the scenes" glimpses of several of central Ohio's major warehousing, distribution and intermodal facilities. Although Columbus does not have a Goods Movement Task Force yet, the city has Advanced Logistics Council. The Advanced Logistics Council is a private sector driven group, staffed through the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce to build the Greater Columbus region as a center of excellence in national and international logistics management. The Ohio water and inland ports serve as important freight partners, as they hold the authority of a local government, including taxing authority.

Although MORPC's initial steps have provided a strong foundation, much more needs to be done to establish a mature, functioning goods movement system for the Columbus region. MORPC seeks the knowledge needed to improve the area's planning process concurrently with the development of the 20 year Transportation Plan (T-Plan) and subsequent Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). MORPC is pursuing special freight provisions and incentives to be incorporated into the planning process and program development to ensure that private stakeholders vital to the economic success of the region benefit from regional improvements and funding allocations.

MORPC determined that the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC) in Philadelphia, PA, would be a strong Peer from which to learn. In particular, MORPC was interested in DVRPC's active Goods Movement Task Force and aggressive F-TIP program. The intent of the MORPC-DVRPC Peer Exchange was to increase Columbus' freight planning capacity by learning of the DVRPC experience with building their freight program to meet the needs of the freight community as well as the awareness of communities impacted by the region's freight needs. In order to build strong freight planning partnerships, MORPC invited stakeholders from the central Ohio public sector freight stakeholders - including the Ohio Department of Transportation, the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce and local governments - to participate in the Peer Exchange.

II. MPO Perspectives

1. Overview of the Delaware Valley and the DVRPC Freight Planning Program -
John Coscia and Ted Dahlburg

Regional Characteristics

The diverse ports of the Delaware Valley region are located 90 miles up-river from the ocean. Most of the ports' cargo is bulk; 85 percent of the cargo is imported. The Delaware Valley region receives more than 200 ships/month carrying international cargo. They carry a range of products, such as cocoa beans from West Africa, steel from Japan, frozen meat from Australia and perishable foods from South America. One of the ports contains an auto facility that marshals both domestic and international cargo.

All of the major intermodal port and rail facilities are located along the Delaware River and the parallel highway, I-95. The region has designated National Highway System (NHS) connectors to the intermodal facilities (individual or clusters of facilities). NHS connectors carry at least 100 trucks/day by direction. Truck is the pre-dominant mode for connections, even at port and rail facilities that are located near one another. The center of freight movement is South Philadelphia with three intermodal rail yards and several port facilities.

Local air freight primarily consists of package parcels (e.g., UPS). This cargo is handled at Philadelphia International Airport.

The DVRPC Role

The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC) is the regional land use and transportation planning entity for the greater Philadelphia region, as well as the designated MPO. The area covers the Philadelphia, Trenton, Camden and Chester metropolitan region, which is comprised of 5.4 million residents and 2.8 million jobs.

The movement of urban goods through the Delaware Valley is based on a principle of prioritizing long-range, multi-modal freight planning. DVRPC perceives their primary goods movement interest to be easing congestion in order to attract businesses. A fluid transportation hub translates into lower cost of business. Job retention and job creation are important to re-energizing the economic vitality of the region.

DVRPC has 18 members on its board. Each member has one vote, including the City of Philadelphia. A very complicated board structure was designed to ensure equal representation from both the Pennsylvania and New Jersey sides of the Delaware River.

DVRPC houses an Urban Goods Program with two dedicated staff members attending to the issues of intermodal freight movement. DVRPC continues a strong education outreach effort. In addition to regularly issuing a Freight Lines data bulletin, DVRPC performed an intermodal container case study. The case study traced the route of a container of coffee being shipped from Brazil to Canada via the Delaware Valley. The DVRPC freight manager prepared a report and slides illustrating how the intermodal freight system moves cargo through the region. Another popular effort has been the photo gallery posted on the freight portion of the DVRPC website, which subtly reminds users of what constitutes freight (e.g., supermarket produce is freight).

Another successful initiative of DVRPC is the Freight Forward Improvement Program. Created to benefit freight carriers and shippers of the region, the program focuses on small maintenance and minor improvement projects that can be carried out on highways, bridges and railroads easily and quickly. The program addresses the special needs of the local freight community that require only a quick-fix solution without having to make a major effort for large projects. Candidates can fill out and submit applications on the Internet. A committee of transportation planners and engineers review the proposals and attempt to implement appropriate projects for the program.

Goods Movement Task Force

DVRPC created the Goods Movement Task Force, which is at the fore of DVRPC's freight planning activities, in 1992. The purpose of the Delaware Valley Goods Movement Task Force is to "promote local freight operations" and "implement a regional goods movement strategy" in order to augment the Delaware Valley's position in the global economy. Their intermodal focus on freight movement encompasses highways, railroads, ports, airports and facilities dedicated to multimodal purposes.

Source: "Championing the Philadelphia-Camden-Trenton Freight Gateway"
presentation by Ted Dahlburg, DVRPC.

The Goods Movement Task Force has a strong public sector show of leadership and support, signaling to industry that the topics are relevant. The DVRPC Executive Director is actively involved in the Task Force, and co-chairs the quarterly meetings along with a Deputy Secretary from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT). PennDOT and New Jersey DOT are strong partners with DVRPC. PennDOT is now creating an intermodal job position for each district and MPO, as well as a book that covers the gamut of job-related activities.

Members of the Task Force include trucking firms and associations, Class 1 and short-line railroads, port operators and agencies, air cargo carriers, shippers, freight forwarding, third party logistics companies, economic development organizations, state departments of transportation (DOTs), and federal and county government representatives.

The Task Force also houses special subcommittees on data, planning, and shippers. Industry representatives head the subcommittees. The subcommittees provide freight work groups for MPO and state DOT initiatives, as well as guide DVRPC studies, monitor legislation, and provide a forum for freight representatives to meet and communicate relevant news and information. Each subcommittee has 15 members representing various modes and freight activities from the larger Task Force.

The Task Force includes city and county transportation planners, and these professionals may advocate the recommendations approved by the Task Force within their own agencies. DVRPC's Transportation Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) does not include agencies below the county level, because attempting to do so with the region's 353 municipalities would be extremely difficult.

The committee's activities focus on providing input to the Long Range Plan, Transportation Improvement Program (TIP), and Work Program. The Task Force has been successful in submitting candidate ideas for projects. An active committee provides a "pulse" to the program and involves relevant stakeholders. Thus far, the Task Force has participated in various technical studies (e.g., Short Line Railroad Bridge Inventory and Delaware County Grade Crossing Study).

The general meetings of the Task Force are designed to join all modes within the meeting room (i.e., truckers, railroaders, etc.) to foster cooperation and generate creative responses to the region's freight needs. The meeting dates are locked in a year ahead in order to maximize attendance of critical partners. The meetings include two-minute reports from the various Task Force Members and Subcommittees to ensure that members have buy-in to the activities of the group. The meetings also provide a forum to educate the diverse freight representatives on pertinent issues by including guest speakers. Past speakers include the Consul General of Brazil, and Gerhardt Muller (author of Intermodal Freight Transportation). While the larger Task Force meets quarterly, the subcommittees can meet during interim months, thus sustaining the work between the quarterly Task Force meetings.

While DVRPC already has a strong start in its freight program, potential growth areas exist. DVRPC desires to promote safety programs, increase trucking involvement, and advance strategies identified in the "Freight As A Good Neighbor" study put out by NCHRP Synthesis (33-12).

Currently, one interest of the Task Force is the compliance of Chester, Camden and Philadelphia with the Patriot Act to secure the ports. Members of the Goods Movement Task Force are working with DVRPC to ensure that only one security pass is needed for the three different ports in the Delaware Valley Region, instead of individual passes for each port of entry.

2. Delaware County Highway Railroad Grade Crossing Study - Kathleen Belmonte

Ms. Kathleen Belmonte described one of the freight-related transportation studies sponsored by DVRPC. The Delaware County Highway Railroad Grade Crossing Study grew out of a concern for safety issues and a request from Delaware County to study the at-grade railroad crossings of the CSX freight railroad segment running through Delaware County. The Delaware County segment carries 35 trains/day through developed lands, and includes 11 at-grade crossings. The traffic volumes on the roads where the crossings are located range from 3,500 to 18,000 vehicles/day. One road also carries a SEPTA trolley route.

The study collected data and developed recommendations for the 11 at-grade crossings. The main tasks of the study were to:

1. Create a steering committee
2. Collect relevant rail line and highway data
3. Develop improvement scenarios
4. Prepare a list of recommended improvements for the corridor
5. Finalize recommendations and any potential next steps

The study enjoyed full support and cooperation from a variety of agencies. Raw data was drawn from multiple agencies, including accident data from the police and crash statistics from PennDOT, as well as from the Association of American Railroads (AAR) number, CSX train data, and Average Annual Daily Traffic (AADT).

The study resulted in the development of a steering committee, which included representatives from CSX Rail, PennDOT, Southeastern Pennsylvania Transit Authority (SEPTA), PUC, DVRPC, Delaware County, and surrounding municipalities. A list of prioritized local concerns was also generated:

• Safety: accidents, malfunctioning warning devices, trespassers
• Noise: horn/train
• Debris: vegetation, trash
• Congestion: traffic, blockages
• Access: pedestrians, emergency vehicle coordination

Ms. Belmonte provided an overview of the specific options developed to address the issues facing each of the grade crossings. The list of options ranged from consolidating/eliminating crossings, to new technology devices and other safety and traffic management measures. One decision-making tool utilized by DVRPC to compare the various gradec-crossing options is GradeDec.Net. DVRPC is one of the only MPOs using gradedec.net, which is a decision support software package tool developed by the Federal Railraod Administration (FRA) to evaluate benefit costs of various investment decisions.

The study provided a series of recommendations that included updating the AAR data, enhancing an existing safety program (Operation Lifesaver), maintaining warning devices, installing new technologies and other supplemental measures, implementing a right-of-way program, and conducting sub-corridor analyses for grade closures/separations. DVRPC plans to provide the study results to the region's municipalities. The MPO board may follow-up on particular recommendations and initiatives identified within the study.

3. DVRPC Transportation Improvement Program - Charles Dougherty

Mr. Charles Dougherty provided an overview of the DVRPC role in developing the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) in general, and how to get freight projects included in the TIP in particular.

The TIP is an agreed upon list of priority transportation projects taken from the Regional Transportation Plan that are seeking federal funds. In Pennsylvania, the TIP is a four year program, while in New Jersey, the TIP is a three-year program. Mr. Dougherty emphasized that while the TIP is required for any project to be eligible for federal funding, it is by no means a guarantee that the funds will be solicited. The DVRPC TIP includes all state funded capital projects as well as federally funded projects.

DVRPC produces a single regional TIP, divided into separate sections for Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Currently, the PA TIP (FY 2003 - 2006) includes over 530 projects, and apportions $1.85 billion to highways and $1.64 billion to transit (47 percent of the PA TIP is for SEPTA- related transit projects). The NJ TIP (FY 2003 - 2005) includes nearly 200 projects, and apportions $506 million to highways and $430 million to transit. The DVRPC region includes Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties in Pennsylvania, and Burlington, Camden, Gloucester and Mercer counties in New Jersey.

Source: "DVRPC Transportation Improvement Program"
presentation by Charles Dougherty.

The DVRPC TIP is developed through a consensus building process involving its member agencies. Each update cycle begins with a reinvestigation of the costs and schedule of continuing TIP projects and the screening of candidate projects to fit the region's priorities within the financial constraints of available funding. Mr. Dougherty stated that the current process of having the member agencies work together to screen candidate projects in a mutually supportive manner appeared to be more effective than using a point scoring process as had been done in the first years under ISTEA. While this may require up to five full days of meetings to reach consensus among the transportation planners of the member agencies, the extensive planning and interagency consultation before a final vote by the Board on which projects to include in the TIP results in a very smooth and uncontentious manner.

For the PA TIP, PennDOT consults with its planning partners (MPOs and rural area agencies) to establish financial targets. All available federal and state capital funds are distributed to the regions, primarily by formula for "Core" funds and by project specific allocation of other "Add-On" funds. Certain federal funding categories (NHS, STP, IM, MinGar) are combined into one category called "Highway".

The "Core" funds are distributed as follows:

• Federal Highway and State Highway Funds - Set asides are first skimmed off the top for certain Add-Ons (transit flex, economic development, spike). The remaining funds are divided into Urban and Rural pots based on shares of population, VMT and lane-miles. Funding is distributed to regions within these groupings based on the following: Urban: share of VMT and lane-miles; Rural: share of lane-miles.
• Federal Bridge and State Bridge Funds - Share of Deficient Bridge Deck (square feet weighted for posted/closed).
• STU (federal STP-Urban Allocated funds)- Federal formula based on the share of the urban population.
• CMAQ - Federal formula based on the weighted share of non-attainment area population.
• Transportation Enhancements (TE) - based on 80% share of population and 20% share of land.
• Safety Funds - based on grade crossings, railroad/highway accidents.

The "Add-On" funds include: Congressional earmarks, Interstate Construction funds, Appalachian Development funds, federal Flex Funds for Transit, Spike funds and Economic Development funds. The funds for Add-Ons are distributed to regions according to the following:

• Interstate Construction - by project
• Appalachian Development - by corridor
• Congressional Earmarks - by project
• Spikes and Economic Development - by project, at the discretion of PennDOT Secretary
• Transit Flex - per state Act 3 of 1997 agreement

DVRPC has adopted a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with each of its two states and transit operators, as permitted under federal regulations, which allow for expedited procedures when amending the TIP. Pennsylvania and New Jersey have reworked the MOUs four times to continually improve the programming and documentation procedures. The TIP is amended every month, with sometimes as many as 20 actions in a given month. The FHWA offices have not objected to the multiple revisions and have actually recommended these procedures as best practices.

As part of the MOU, DVRPC has developed a financial constraint chart (an Excel spreadsheet) to help handle the monthly changes to the adopted TIP. The spreadsheet divides actions into three categories: 1) Formal Actions (requiring MPO Board Approval); 2) Administrative Actions (approved by MPO Executive Director); and 3) Information Actions (not requiring MPO action under MOU). These divisions are based on the extent of the change and the order of magnitude of the cost change. The advantage of the spreadsheet is that it shows project specific detail for funding and schedule changes, without the need to link specific projects in order to show that financial constraint is being maintained. The net result of all the changes must keep the TIP within the funding targets established when the TIP was adopted, plus any new funds to the region. The financial constraint spreadsheet is forwarded to PennDOT and then to FHWA and other relevant actors as part of an electronic submittal for TIP/STIP approval, resulting in a total approval time of one to two weeks.

The Goods Movement Task Force has been an invaluable forum to raise freight issues in the region as part of the TIP development and amendment process. It provides staff with an opportunity to educate members of the freight community about the planning, programming and project development process. By exposing members of the freight community to the consensus building process by which competing projects are advanced within the fiscally constrained TIP, unrealistic expectations can be tempered and better strategies can be fostered.

4. Travel Demand Modeling - Matthew Gates

Mr. Matthew Gates described a 2000 study on commodity flows from survey data. Surveys were conducted within the Delaware Valley regional boundaries, as well as in areas surrounding the boundary. The data they collected included:

• type of vehicle
• trip time of day
• roads
• origins and destinations
• commodities carried

On the borders of the region, the DVRPC study team surveyed 20,000 vehicles, of which 4,000 were trucks. The study was conducted in coordination with neighboring agencies, including the bridge authorities, DOTs, and MPOs. Questionnaires were also sent to regional trucking firms within the region.

The study found that the number of parcel truck trips averaged 133 trips/day, mostly less than one mile in length. Because the nature of their deliveries was different from other kinds of trucks, the parcel truck data was separated from other kinds of truck data.

In addition to the intensive data collection effort of the 2000 commodity flows study, DVRPC conducts many traffic counts for PennDOT, as well as classification counts, portion of truck counts, and travel based on classification counts.

5. Office of Long Range Planning - Michael Boyer

Mr. Michael Boyer covered the role of freight within the Delaware Valley Long Range Plan. The 2020 Long Range Plan, adopted in September 1995, was the first major plan update since ISTEA and had a decidedly intermodal focus. The 2020 Plan was one of the first Long Range Plans of the Delaware Valley region that contained freight movement initiatives and recommendations for each corridor.

An update of the 2020 plan, called Horizons 2025, was adopted in July 2001 and amended in July 2002. The transportation policy areas of focus were traffic congestion, environment, freight movement, mobility, aviation, and bicycle and pedestrian travel. The new vision emphasizes increasing the efficient movement of freight between regions via highway, rail, marine and air modes, and using public investment to support intermodal transfer facilities.

Mr. Boyer recounted the freight-related policies of Horizons 2025. They are listed below:

• Increase the level of public and private investment in transportation facilities that promote freight movement and economic development
  • Encourage joint public/private programming of transportation improvements
  • Creatively apply public transportation programs and funds to maximize the effectiveness of goods movement
• Program and integrate needed freight movement projects in the TIP
• Institute small-scale improvements through the Freight Forward Program

• Identify and build improvements that facilitate the flow of goods
• Use the Delaware Valley Goods Movement Task Force to support and direct planning efforts
• Collect, analyze, and share goods movement data and trends leading to good planning and public education
• Identify needed improvements through the management systems, corridor and other technical studies, and connector evaluations

• Improve the safety of operating conditions for the flow of goods
• Provide adequate rest areas
• Improve safety of highway/railway grade crossings, and, where feasible, eliminate crossings
• Protect resident quality of life while pursuing goods movement objectives.

Horizons 2025 listed 12 projects and 17 studies related to freight.

DVRPC has now begun a two-year effort to revise the Long Range Plan to generate the 2030 Plan. Towards that end, "what if" travel demand scenarios have been simulated for the year 2030, based on a variety of potential growth patterns. The scenarios have been quantitatively and qualitatively analyzed. Preliminary results show the importance of economic development in the formation of the Long Range Plan. Using several indicators to assess the alternatives, the outcomes will be used as reference points upon which to base the 2030 Plan.

6. Office of Aviation Planning - Roger Moog

Mr. Roger Moog discussed airfreight movement in the region. He described how funding for airport improvements comes from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Therefore, airports do not compete for traditional highway and transit funds.

The DVRPC aviation study region encompasses twelve counties in four states, an area that is three counties larger than the traditional DVRPC planning region. Philadelphia International Airport is the primary air cargo facility in the DVRPC region. Limited airfreight moves through two smaller commercial airports, Trenton-Mercer and New Castle County. In 1999, 2/3 of all cargo was transported in cargo jets, while 1/3 was transported as "belly cargo" in passenger jets.

According to Mr. Moog, textiles are a good example of outbound cargo, while many of the products entering the region are finished products. He noted that many items manufactured west of the Delaware Valley region bypass Philadelphia in favor of John F. Kennedy Airport in New York City. The City of Philadelphia, the owner of the Philadelphia International Airport, is attempting to increase the number of destinations from the airport to enhance freight flow into and out of Philadelphia. Capacity for freight movement is very integrated with the range of commercial passenger aviation. Thus, when a carrier expands its service, the freight capacity expands in suit.

Mr. Moog pointed out the value suburban airports have as reliever facilities for Philadelphia International Airport, and as point-to-point destinations for specialized air cargo. Approximately 70 percent of the Delaware Valley's suburban airports are privately owned, yet they are open to the public. Maintaining the region's public use airports is essential and ultimately translates into greater commercial capacity at air cargo service sites for corporations. If the suburban airports of the Delaware Valley close, increased airfreight congestion is added to that of the Philadelphia International Airport. Hence, the operation of suburban airports not only affect the larger airports and the freight flow, but also the economic health of the region as a whole as corporations are forced to relocate to meet their needs.

7. Work Program - John Griffies

Due to time constraints, the scheduled presentation on the DVRPC Planning Work Program could not be made. However, the pertinent information derived from the PowerPoint slides is included for informational purposes.

The DVRPC Work Program enumerates the projects, budgets, and associated funding sources for the fiscal year. DVRPC staff members provide input on the budget of projects, and staff, committee and member governments provide input on project selection. DVRPC typically begins its Work Program development in September with the review of the previous year's projects, and continues with the selection of projects, development, drafting and approval of the draft, and adoption of the Work Program in January. The Final Work Program is submitted to the funding agencies in March.

Source: "DVRPC Planning Work Program Process Overview"
presentation by John Griffies

8. DVRPC Freight Meeting and Site Visits

Members of the Columbus, OH contingency spent the second day of their trip observing the activities of the Goods Movement Task Force in their quarterly meeting. On average, 60 individuals representing various freight industries gather to meet and discuss pertinent issues.

DVRPC prepares for internal and external presentations of interest to freight representatives, as well as two-minute report-outs of the actions and issues identified by the Task Force's subcommittees. The meeting began with a presentation from the Vermont Railway describing the advantages of an intermodal trailer for the short-haul market over the traditional container. A representative of MARAD, Office of Intermodal Development, Maritime Administration then gave an update on freight implications in the latest SAFETEA revisions. The U.S. Coast Guard provided an update on its role within the port as the agency is incorporated into the Department of Homeland Security. The meeting ended with two-minute oral report-outs given by PennDOT, NJ DOT, DVRPC the Data, Planning and Shippers Subcommittees, the Intermodal Initiatives, FHWA and a current study

Site Visits

The Columbus group was taken to visit the following ports to get a first-hand experience of the freight flows in the Philadelphia region:

• Pier 84 (the primary cocoa port)
• Pier 98 Annex (the automobile facility)
• Packer Avenue (the largest port in the Delaware Valley)

IV. Lessons Learned

The following section describes the discussion items generated from the Columbus Team's responses to the presentations summarized above, as well as a meeting with key members of the Goods Movement Task Force representing various agencies and businesses.

TIP: Revisions and Representation

DVRPC conducts monthly revisions to their TIP. In Ohio, the TIP is revised on a quarterly basis, with provisions for emergency STIP revisions whenever necessary. More frequent revision to the TIP has the advantage of accommodating innovative changes that benefit economic development in a shorter time frame.

DVRPC leaves the responsibility for small community representation on the TIP to the county. DVRPC expects counties to be conducting outreach to the municipalities, and determining which projects are appropriate. In past DVRPC experience with the TIP prioritization process, staff found that other counties tend to lobby for the smaller counties. There is a sense of "fairness" and "it's our turn" when it comes to selecting projects for the regional TIP.

Goods Movement Task Force: Coordination Between Public and Private Agencies

The Task Force provides an opportunity to generate ideas, provide perspective on a long-range vision of the region as a whole, and prioritize projects that benefit the entire region. The regular Task Force meetings and activities create a systematic feedback loop that ensures freight planning based on actual industry feedback instead of assumptions of the freight industry's priorities.

In order to recruit and sustain private industry involvement in the freight planning process, private sector interests must be addressed. Three main incentives for private involvement in the Goods Movement Task Force are: 1) input on prioritization of studies; 2) access to project funding; and 3) technical assistance and project consultation. One method employed by DVRPC to engage shippers responsible for the refineries in the area has been to create a separate Shippers Subcommittee within the Goods Movement Task Force. This offers shippers the chance to provide input on identifying important freight priorities and voicing their solutions.

The Task Force serves as a valuable education tool for disparate freight perspectives. The intermodal and regional emphasis of the Task Force helps to address the short-term business cycles and individualistic freight interests by instigating a longer-range perspective of the freight system as a whole. The Task Force meetings and initiatives help to promote greater understanding of the rationale behind specific freight planning decisions, such as reducing truck movement in favor of rail cargo.

Goods Movement Task Force: MPO as an Opportune Host

DVRPC Goods Movement Task Force members considered the leadership by the MPO to be crucial to the success of the Task Force. Industry members of the Task Force voiced an appreciation for the MPO's role as initiator and convener of freight-related projects that benefit industry as well as the interests of citizens within the region.

The neutral MPO entity facilitates greater intermodal discussions with regard to public works projects. Private industry representatives of the Task Force voiced a desire to take advantage of the neutral forum provided by DVRPC. The MPO helps to mitigate the various self interests of the different modes and private sector entities. As a MPO, DVRPC provides a strong sounding board to the projects proposed by freight industry representatives by their holistic vision of a seamless transportation system for the region.

Leadership of the Task Force by the regional MPO also provides the freight community access to public funds for important freight projects. Additionally, leadership by the MPO provides the freight community with access to the resources and skills available at the MPO (e.g., data collection on the number of grade crossings).

One potential downside to being linked to the MPO is less prominent visibility among political officials in Washington, D.C.

V. For More Information

Key Contact(s) for host agency(s):

VI. Participants

Kathleen Belmonte, Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC)
Michael Boyer, DVRPC
Greg Brown, PennDOT
Tashia Clemons, FHWA, Ohio Division
Rick Crawford, Norfolk Southern Corporation
John Coscia, DVRPC
Ted Dahlburg, DVRPC
Matt Dietrich, Ohio Rail Development Commission
Charles Dougherty, DVRPC
Ed Duffy, Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation
Carmine Fiscina, FHWA PA, ITS
Kevin Fisher, Nexus Distribution Corporation
Suzann Gad, Ohio Department of Transportation
Matthew Gates, DVRPC
John Griffies, DVRPC
John Hanssens, Philadelphia International Airport
Ray Heinzelmann, Delaware River Port Authority
Esther Lee, Volpe Center, USDOT
Kelvin MacKavanagh, Railroad Consultant
Roger Moog, DVRPC
Jim Runk, PA Motor Truck Association
Sonja Simpson, Village of Obetz
Jeff Sutch, SMS Rail Services
Leslie Weilbacher, Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce
Erika Witzke, Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC)

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