Construction work is in full swing on Union Pacific's nearly $370 million, 785-acre Joliet Intermodal Terminal and CenterPoint Intermodal Center - Joliet ("CIC - Joliet"). The initial phase of the 3,900-acre, state-of-the-art integrated logistics center is slated for completion in June 2010.
The terminal will increase the railroad's international and domestic container capacity and improve rail traffic efficiencies in Chicago. The Joliet Intermodal Terminal will include four 8,000-foot tracks with capacity to handle the loading/unloading of 107 intermodal double-stack rail cars, six 8,000-foot tracks to give train crews the ability to sort rail cars by destination, and an additional six tracks to stage rail cars prior to unloading or loading.
The terminal also will feature four cranes that straddle the rail cars and two rubber-tired mobile "packers" that lift trailers and containers on and off rail cars. The cranes are equipped with Global Positioning System (GPS) technology, increasing loading and unloading efficiencies.
In addition, there will be more than 3,400 staging or parking places for trailers and containers; an advanced yard system that coordinates all movement of rail cars, trucks, trailers and containers at the facility; AGS Gate technology that decreases truck processing time from five minutes to between 30 to 90 seconds; and a modern security system.
The new facility, located about five miles south of I-80 and seven miles east of I-55, has additional space for future expansion based on customer demand.
CIC - Joliet is a $2 billion private investment. CenterPoint will be investing more than $200 million in new infrastructure, including roads, bridges and utilities. Of the 3,900 total acres, 975 acres are zoned for rail and intermodal terminal development; 1,900 acres are available for up to 20 million square feet of industrial facilities (warehouse, distribution, manufacturing, cross-dock, and transloading); and 400 acres can accommodate container/trailer and equipment management facilities. The remaining 625 acres have been reserved for stormwater and conservation.
CIC - Joliet is an extension of CenterPoint's 2,500-acre integrated logistics center in Elwood, located just two miles south, the redevelopment of the U.S. Army's former Joliet Arsenal. Total investment in CIC - Elwood is projected to be $1 billion at full build-out. CenterPoint has developed almost nine million square feet of industrial facilities within CIC - Elwood in just six years as a result of customer demand for warehouse/distribution facilities located adjacent to rail. Combined, CenterPoint's 6,000 acres within CIC - Elwood and CIC - Joliet create the largest master-planned integrated logistics center in North America.