Freight System
Heartland Highway Freight Corridor Consortium
The Southeast Iowa Regional Planning Commission, the Area 15 Regional Planning Commission, the Des Moines Area MPO, and the CIRTPA completed the Trans-Iowa/Illinois Freight Corridor Study, which includes U.S. Highway 34, U.S. Highway 63, and Iowa Highway 163, from Galesburg, Illinois, northwesterly to Pleasant Hill, Iowa. The study sought to educate the corridor's decision makers and citizens about the corridor's freight-carrying and economic development potential. As a follow-up to this study, the Heartland Highway Freight Corridor Consortium was created. This consortium of public and private sector representatives seeks to implement the study's recommendations.
Truck Freight
In 2006, the Des Moines Area MPO conducted the Goods Movement in Central Iowa and in the Des Moines Metro Area: 2006 Update Report. The study states that, by 2020, a large amount of truck freight traffic in central Iowa will be concentrated on Interstate 35, Interstate 80, Interstate 235, U.S. 30, U.S. 65, U.S. 6, U.S. 169, and IA 163.
Reebie Associates data used in the study showed that trucks in and out of central Iowa moved 80 million tons (94 percent of the tonnage for all modes) of goods in 2001. This totaled roughly $62 billion, or 95 percent, of the total value of all shipments that year. By 2011, the CIRTPA highway freight system will grow by 20 percent to handle 96 million tons of cargo.
Rail Freight
According to the 2006 Goods Movement Study, four different companies operate freight rail in the CIRTPA area. The Burlington Northern Santa Fe, the Northern Southern, and the Union Pacific are Class I railroads, while Iowa Interstate is a Class II railroad. These four railroad companies operate a total of 452 miles of track in the CIRTPA region.
Reebie Associates data shows central Iowa’s railway system to carry about 6 percent of the total tonnage and 5 percent of the total value of all of the shipments in the region. Additional information regarding the CIRTPA’s Railways is located in the Rail Transportation section.
Air Freight
The CIRTPA does not include a major freight-generating airport. The Des Moines International Airport (DSM) is the only freight-generating airport in central Iowa and is located in the Des Moines Area MPO’s planning area. While not located in the CIRTPA region, the freight generated at DSM impacts the CIRTPA’s transportation system, as good are moved from DSM to areas within the CIRTPA and through the CIRTPA to other areas.
Intermodal Freight
Intermodal freight transportation is the movement of freight using multiple modes of transportation without the need to transfer cargo between containers. Grain elevators are considered intermodal facilities because of the use of rail to transport goods from the location. There are a total of 48 grain elevators in the CIRTPA area, in addition to the plethora of grain elevators and grain processing plants found in neighboring counties.
