U.S. legislators and members of the transportation industry want a national plan to improve the flow of freight.
Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., introduced a bill Thursday that would give the U.S. Department of Transportation two years to develop a national freight strategy. The bill calls for a competitive grant program to stimulate investment in freight projects.
"Poor planning and underinvestment in our transportation infrastructure has led to increased congestion at our ports, highways, airports and railways and increases the cost of doing business," Lautenberg said in a statement.
The measure was co-sponsored by Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, both of Washington state. The measure was immediately hailed by industry groups.
Kurt Nagle, president and chief executive of the American Association of Port Authorities, said a national freight policy is 'something this country has lacked for far too long." Modernizing the freight delivery system also could help the environment by reducing congestion and rewarding efficiencies, advocates said Thursday.
One of the primary objectives is to improve "connectivity" among truck routes, railroads and ports, said Leslie Blakey of the Coalition for America's Gateways and Trade Corridors.
Projects that would be eligible for Department of Transportation grants under the proposal include upgrades to ports, freight-rail, and access points to ports and freight terminals.
"The bill would hopefully address a lot of the infrastructure requirements along the nation's inland waterways and also the ports around the various coasts," said Otis Williams, deputy director at the St. Louis Development Corp.
St. Louis is the third-busiest inland port in the nation. Last year, the city's port authority launched a major campaign to modernize the municipal river terminal, 1½ miles north of downtown St. Louis.
By the end of this year, the city hopes to hire a contractor to rebuild the south dock. Most of the $19.5 million cost is being picked up by the U.S. Economic Development Administration, with the city providing a $3.9 million match, Williams said.
The city also is seeking a federal Tiger II grant to make more repairs totaling an additional $6 million.
Road salt that is used to treat city and St. Louis County streets in the winter arrives through the municipal terminal, officials said. The terminal also is used to move grain, coal, chemicals and scrap metal.
St. Louis officials expect more freight to move through U.S. ports once the economy recovers and after work is completed to double the capacity of the Panama Canal.
Regional leaders are trying to establish Lambert-St. Louis International Airport as a hub for air freight between China and the Midwest. Related projects include developing a full interchange at Scudder Road and Interstate 170, and other street and rail infrastructure serving properties next to the airport.
The Missouri Department of Transportation already created its own freight development office about a year and a half ago, said Brian Weiler, the agency's multimodal director.
In recent years, the state helped to improve truck and rail access to the New Madrid port in southeastern Missouri, Weiler said. That, along with locally funded improvements, helped attract three businesses to that area.
"We have been involved in this for some time, but it is definitely becoming more of an issue," Weiler said.
