Freight Villages

Context Sensitive Design

FHWA Talking Freight Series

May 18, 2005

Roberta Weisbrod, Ph.D.

Partnership for Sustainable Ports © 2005

A Global Freight Village In the

Tremley Point Area

An analysis of the Global Freight Village Concept

and its applicability in

Union County, New Jersey

Prepared by

The Union County Department Of Economic Development

The County Of Union

Board Of Chosen Freeholders

Freight Villages

• Characterization and Value

• US Impetus/initiatives

• Context sensitive design

Freight villages: Defined

• Cluster of freight-related business

• In a secure perimeter• Single management• Master planned• Near cities• High quality settings• Support services

Freight Villages:

Where are they found?

• Over 40 in Europe

• France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Greece, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Poland

• Networked

Freight Villages: Physical characteristics

Aspect Paris Barcelona Bremen Toulouse

Acres 125 500 300 740

Urban + + + +

Seaport - + + -

Airport + + +

Rail + + + +

Hiways 3 2 2 5

Owners Pub Pub/pr Pub/pr Pub

Freight villages

• Multi-modal options

• Intermodal transfer

• Logistics services

• Rich in freight options

QuickTime™ and aTIFF (LZW) decompressor

are needed to see this picture.

Freight Villages

Comprehensive Services (Barcelona)

Freight Villages: Functional characteristics

• Intermodal operations• Integrated distribution• Smart warehousing• Logistics• Showrooms• Customs• And support services

Freight Villages: Support services

• Security• Maintenance • Office space• Meeting/conference rooms• Eating facilities• Banking, mail, extra warehouse• Public transportation/internal transit

Freight Villages:

layout of support services

Freight Villages: Additional support services/related businesses

• Vehicle service, repair, leasing• Hotel/motel• Truck stop• Training facility• Employment agency• Insurance• Communications (ISP, webserve, GPS)

Freight Villages

Inappropriate Uses:

• Passive storage• Storage of empty containers• Uncontrolled public use (retail, car rental)• Heavy manufacturing

Freight Villages: Benefits to businesses

• Market proximity• Access to multimodal transport• High quality perimeter security• Efficiency• Business services• Synergistic business opportunities• Esthetic

Freight Villages: Public benefits

• Support/Enable trade• Relieve congestion, VMT• Encourage a growth sector of the economy• Provide jobs in urban area, access to jobs• Restore lands to tax roles• High-value use of property• Landscaping and natural resource protection• Esthetic

Freight Villages: Esthetics

Building by Ricardo Bofill at Zona Actividades Logisticas (freight village), Barcelona

Clip

Freight Villages: What is the US Impetus?

The Urban Freight Dilemma

• Trade -- value & growth are high• Urban areas as market -- benefit from cheap

goods, jobs, value-added businesses• Real estate for freight is scarce/expensive • Congestion, VMT, emissions result• And urban area loses business/quality of life

Freight Villages:Map showing Tremley Point

195

44

0

2781

439

27

LINDEN

0TREMLEY POINT

STATEN ISLAND

LINDEN, NEW JERSEY

0 1.8.60 1.2

Miles

KEYWater AreaCounty (High Res)Census PlaceHighwayStreets

Interstate HighwayRailroad

$NJ TPK EXIT 12

CHEMICAL COAST LINE

$ NJ TPK EXIT 13A

PROPOSED CONNECTOR ROAD

Freight Villages: Case Study

Tremley Point, Union County, New Jersey

• County is rich in freight transport• Near major market • Classic Brownfield• Wetlands• Investment anticipated

Freight villages: Tremley Point feasibility

• In the center of a major market

• Freight transport-rich• Classic brownfield• Wetlands• Investment anticipated

TREMLEY POINT WITH 20 MILE RADIUS0 3010 20

Miles

TREMLEY POINT

NEW YORK CITY

MIDDLESEX COUNTY

MORRIS COUNTY

UNION COUNTY

ESSEX COUNTY

Freight Villages: Tremley Point

Drivers for Tremley Point freight village:• Local roads truck traffic

• Waves of brownfield redevelopment • Port growth• Need for freight-related real estate• Garbage intermodal proposal• NJTPA study• Creative leap

Freight Villages

NJTPA Study

• Brownfields: perfect for freight infrastructure• High value smart warehouses• Planned unit developments

• <www.njtpa.org>

Freight Villages

A Freight Village at Tremley Point?

Acreage 300-400, brownfieldsProximate city <20 milesInt’l airport +Seaport +Rail +Interstate access <->Barge +Small plane airport +Public/private partner?Strong public interest

Freight Villages: Coming to America?

Actions for developing Tremley Point FV

• Develop land use plans with City of Linden• Encourage state interest/support• Encourage private investors -- meet directly• Work with adjacent counties• Improve access to Interstate

“Global Freight Villages: A Solution to the Urban Freight Dilemma”

Paper prepared for TRB Annual Meeting 2002

by

Roberta Weisbrod, Partnership for Sustainable Ports

Ernest Swiger, Planners Diversified

Mary Kay Murphy, Union County

Gerhard Muller, US Merchant Marine Academy

Contact: Roberta Weisbrod

Freight Villages: Context sensitive design and sustainability features

• Improve land values - highest and best use

• Appropriate density - minimize foot print

• Jobs for local residents - opportunity/access

• Access to CBD

• Consolidation of deliveries possible

• Natural area protection/enhancement

Freight Villages: Critical evaluation from the EU

Issues:• Top-down planning• Non-market based decision making -- overbuild• Consolidation goal not always achieved• EU City Freight: www.cityfreight.org; • & Best urban freight solutions www.bestufs.net

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CSD planning principals avoid most EU mistakes

Freight Villages: Improving the concept of CSD

Make explicit the following values:

• Improve environment: air emissions, VMT

• Improve business efficiency (reduce/avoid congestion, reduce costs, energy use)

• Allow urban labor access to jobs

• Improve work conditions of mgmt. & labor

Freight Villages: Issues to consider and research

Making the case/improving the outcome:

• Quantify benefits of compactness, etc• Maximize public benefits (spillover)• Quantify value for public/private sectors• Quantify ROI for public/private sectors• Design for the future