Press Release:
Rickenbacker Intermodal Terminal to Create More Efficient Heartland Corridor
More streamlined logistics route to benefit Columbus region
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The multi-state Heartland Corridor project, with the Rickenbacker Intermodal Terminal as a major leg, will open its rails September 9. Supported by public-private partnership funding secured in part by the Columbus Chamber, the project is expected to streamline logistics operations passing through the Columbus Region from the East Coast to Chicago.
The Rickenbacker Intermodal Terminal is part of a three-year engineering effort to increase intermodal freight capacity on a Norfolk Southern rail line know as the Heartland Corridor – running between the port of Hampton Roads, Va., and Chicago, with Columbus as a major hub. The project raised vertical clearances in 28 total rail tunnels to accommodate double-stack trains, reducing the transit time between the East Coast and the Midwest by up to one day.
“The success of the Rickenbacker Intermodal Terminal and the Heartland Corridor directly impacts not only on the region’s logistics businesses, but also on other sectors in the region which depend on efficient rail service. Additionally, this update allows the Columbus region more efficient access to global markets,†said Steve Tugend, vice president, government relations, the Columbus Chamber. “As a conduit to boosting economic development in the region, the Columbus Chamber is pleased to have helped in securing funding for this significant, interstate rail project.â€Â
Said Dan Ricciardi, executive director, Columbus Region Logistics Council (CRLC), “The Rickenbacker Intermodal Terminal allows a larger amount of freight to be transported through Columbus and along the Heartland Corridor, with a quicker turnaround time than ever before. This project further cements the region’s focus on logistics and transportation, continuing to put Columbus on the radar of companies seeking quality and cost-effective rail services nationwide.â€Â
The logistics industry is a major focus of the Columbus region’s economy, accounting for 13.8 percent of the non-public workforce in central Ohio. The Columbus Chamber and Columbus State’s Center for Workforce Development recently helped to secure $4.6 million in federal stimulus funding to create the attracting and retaining talent (ART) workforce training program, providing classroom and hands-on training to both new and displaced workers.
The region’s logistics sector is expected to outperform the national average this year, due in part to the opening of the Rickenbacker Intermodal Terminal. Columbus also was chosen as a 2010 logistics hotspot by Inbound Logistics magazine.
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