Western North Carolina Inland Port Feasibility Study Western Carolina University, College of Business, Institute for the Economy and the Future AdvantageWest The Louis Berger Group The Tioga Group Principal Investigator: Michael E. Smith, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Global Management and Strategy College of Business, Western Carolina University Cullowhee, NC 28723 (828) 227-3697; [email protected] Western North Carolina Inland Port Feasibility Study Table of Contents Table of Exhibits ................................................................................................................. 5! Acknowledgements.......................................................................................................... 7! Western Carolina University, College of Business and The Institute for the Economy and the Future ............................................................................................................................ 7! Funding Partners............................................................................................................. 7! AdvantageWest ........................................................................................................... 7! Appalachian Regional Commission................................................................................. 7! North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center....................................................... 7! I.! Executive Summary....................................................................................................... 8! II.! Introduction .............................................................................................................. 11! III.! Study Methodology .................................................................................................... 13! Characterization of Existing Conditions............................................................................ 13! Location-Based Market Conditions .................................................................................. 13! Assess Inland Port Feasibility.......................................................................................... 14! Coordinating with the Appalachian Regional Commission Network Appalachia Working Group .................................................................................................................................... 14! IV.! Review of Relevant Literature ..................................................................................... 15! Meeting the Transportation Challenges of the 21st Century: Intermodal Opportunities in the Appalachian Region (2004) ................................................................................... 16! Statewide Logistics Plan for North Carolina (2008) ....................................................... 19! Southern California Inland Port Feasibility Study: Inland Port Case Studies (2006).......... 20! North Carolina Waybill Analysis, Executive Summary (2006) ......................................... 21! South Carolina Inland Container Port Concept Study .................................................... 23! V.! Inland Ports ............................................................................................................... 25! What is an Inland Port? ................................................................................................. 25! The Potential of Inland Ports .......................................................................................... 25! Options......................................................................................................................... 27! Satellite Marine Terminals .......................................................................................... 27! All-Cargo Logistics Airports ......................................................................................... 27! Multi-Modal Logistics Parks ......................................................................................... 27! Rail Intermodal Parks................................................................................................. 28! Networks and Corridors.............................................................................................. 28! Economic Development Initiatives Designated Inland Ports........................................... 29! Trade Processing Centers ........................................................................................... 29! Inland Port Functions..................................................................................................... 29! Value-Added Functions............................................................................................... 30! Adding Value at Inland Ports ...................................................................................... 30! Commercial Customs Functions ...................................................................................... 31! Economic Development.................................................................................................. 32! Conventional Economic Development .......................................................................... 32! Logistics-based Economic Development....................................................................... 32! Inland Ports as Economic Development ....................................................................... 33! Characteristics of Successful Inland Ports........................................................................ 34! VI.! Freight Movement Trends and Impacts on Feasibility.................................................... 36! Escalating Fuel Cost....................................................................................................... 36! 2 - 2 - Western North Carolina Inland Port Feasibility Study Shift of Imports to All Water East Coast Routes ............................................................... 37! Dollar Devaluation and Export Growth............................................................................. 37! Rail Capacity and Pricing Trends..................................................................................... 37! Supply Chain Management............................................................................................. 38! VII.! Inland Port Case Studies ............................................................................................ 40! Northeast Ohio Intermodal Terminal (Neomodal)............................................................. 40! Financing Arrangements............................................................................................. 41! Lessons Learned........................................................................................................ 42! Heartland Corridor......................................................................................................... 43! Heartland Corridor Projects......................................................................................... 44! Portsmouth Rail Project.............................................................................................. 44! Columbus Terminal Expansion .................................................................................... 46! Roanoke, VA and Prichard, WV Intermodal Terminals................................................... 46! Funding .................................................................................................................... 48! Lessons Learned........................................................................................................ 48! San Joaquin Valley Inland Port ....................................................................................... 49! San Joaquin Valley Inland Port Project Review ............................................................. 50! Project Financing and Current Status........................................................................... 51! Lessons Learned........................................................................................................ 51! North American Inland Port Network (NAIPN).................................................................. 52! NAIPN Case Study Review .......................................................................................... 53! Lessons Learned........................................................................................................ 55! Port Des Moines Concept ............................................................................................... 56! Port Des Moines Concept Case Study Review ............................................................... 56! Port Des Moines Concept Current Status...................................................................... 59! Kansas City Smartport ................................................................................................... 60! Lessons Learned........................................................................................................ 60! Relevance to the WNC Inland Port Feasibility Study...................................................... 61! Southern California’s Port Network: Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach & the Southern California Logistics Airport.............................................................................................. 63! The Role of a University ............................................................................................. 64! The “Agile Port Concept” ...........................................................................................