Final Report on Preserving and Protecting Freight Infrastructure and Routes Published by the Transportation Research Board

Categories: News, Studies

April 19, 2012 - Mark Meitzen

A consortium led by Christensen Associates and including the University of Texas at Austin—Center for Transportation Research; Kathryn H.S. Pett; and Grow & Bruening, PC, won a competitive bid to investigate issues related to freight corridor encroachment. The objective of this 16-month research, funded by theTransportation Research Board’s National Cooperative Freight Research Program (NCFRP), was to provide guidance to public and private stakeholders on how to develop, preserve, protect, and enhance freight transportation infrastructure and routes for all modes of transportation. Examples of encroachment include urban gentrification and incompatible land uses near freight transportation facilities (e.g., rail corridors, truck routes, terminals, and ports,) that create pressures to reduce or constrain freight activities because of noise, vibrations, visual pollution, and emissions impacts.

The TRB issued the final report in March 2012. The report is available on its website.

A summary of the study was featured in TR News, TRB’s bi-monthly magazine, on pages 45 to 49 of the January-February 2013 issue. “Preserving and Protecting Freight Infrastructure and Routes,” by Mark Meitzen, is copyright National Academy of Sciences. The article is posted with the permission of the Transportation Research Board.