Greater Houston Freight Committee
Co-Chairs Harris County Judge Ed Emmett and Brian Fielkow, JetCo Delivery CEO
Meeting Agenda
Monday, March 20, 2PM
H-GAC Second Floor Conference Rooms
Agenda Items
I.
Welcoming remarks
Co-Chairs will welcome attendees and share opening remarks.
II.
Update of the TxDOT State Freight Mobility Plan
A TxDOT representative will update the Committee on the progress of the State
Freight Mobility Plan.
III.
Recommendation of Greater Houston Freight System roadways
Attendees will review the results of efforts to identify a local significant freight
roadway network.
IV.
Freight industry trends and needs discussion
The Co-Chairs will lead a discussion to identify the current major freight industry
trends and associated needs. This will include prepared remarks from Union Pacific
Railroad, the Texas Trucking Association – Houston Chapter, the West Houston
Association, Port Houston, and a plastics manufacturer. Willing attendees will also be
invited to comment.
V.
Project prioritization exercise
Based on the previous discussion, attendees will be asked to identify and rank the
most important improvement projects in the region for inclusion in the State Freight
Plan update.
VI.
Announcements
VII.
Adjourn
Greater Houston
Freight Committee
March 20, 2017
Hans-Michael Ruthe
1
Agenda
I. Welcoming Remarks
II. Recommend Greater Houston Freight System Roadways
III. Industry Trends and Needs Discussion
IV. Prioritization Exercise
V. Announcements and Adjourn
2
Greater Houston Freight System
Each roadway evaluated based
on
1. truck usage (%, counts, and
per-mile)
2. connectivity to other freight
networks
3. available alternatives
4. Number of freight facilities
served
5. end-point/terminus
6. stakeholder assessment
Color scale used to prioritize
roadways and assign score
Color / Criteria
Red
Yellow
Green
Orange
Other alternatives
available?
Score
0
1
3
2
0 or 1
End-point service 0 or 2 points
Greater Houston Freight System
 Connectivity to State and
Federal networks
enhanced for local
economy
– Rail yards in near NE
Houston
– E/W service in Bayport
– Cedar Bayou
Greater Houston Freight System
 Web-Map of the network
– Facility names
– Locations
– Nearby freight generators and intermodal
 Next Steps?
– Universe of routes for federal funding
– Agreement with TxDOT and State Freight Plan
Industry Trends and Needs
 Invited speakers
 Open to attendees
Prioritization Exercise
 RED – Roadway improvement such as resurfacing
or widening or extending
 YELLOW – Roadway Intersection / interchange or
operational / design improvement
 GREEN – Non-roadway improvement such as
double-track rail, truck parking, intermodal yard,
water-side, etc.
Next Steps
 Identify possible projects based on prioritization
 Coordinate with TxDOT to recommend projects on
Greater Houston Freight System
 Implement recommendations via State Freight
Plan, H-GAC, or FASTLANE grants
Thank you
Tier 1 Map
•Roadways with above average evaluation
score, supportive assessment from working
group
•More than 4 times the average regional
truck count; more than double percent
truck traffic
•Total of 770 miles
Route
Description
Mileage
Regional Highways
More than 2x average length;
provide access to region
470
Short Links
Short; intense truck usage
Critical Connectors
Medium length; unique
system function
185
87
Major Alternative Routes
Medium to long length
28
Tier
2
Map
•Roadways with average to below evaluation,
or labeled with lower priority by working
group
•More than 4 times the average regional truck
count; almost double percent truck traffic
•Total of 720 miles
Route
Description
Mileage
Regional Highways
More than 2x average length;
provide access to region
442
Short Links
Short; intense truck usage
Critical Connectors
Medium length; unique system
function
113
87
Major Alternative Routes
Medium to long length
79
•Each roadway
grouped into a
“tier” based on
comparative
performance in
each criteria
•Roadways fell into
logical
classification
groups
Route
Classification
Regional Highways
Description
More than 2x average
length; provide access
to region
Short Links
Short; intense truck
usage
Critical Connectors Medium length;
unique system
function
Major Alternative Medium to long
Routes
length
Identification Process
 Stakeholder input
 Make it “critical”
– Quantitative analysis
– Evaluate proposals based on 5 criteria from FAST ACT
– Respond to proposed mileage cap
 Multimodal eventually; roadways for now
•Other currently identified
official freight networks
•National Highway Freight
Network – Primary Highway
Freight System
•TxDOT Primary / Secondary
Freight Network
•Recently announced
developments related to Gulf
Resin Boom
•Major distribution centers and
logistics parks; FTZs
•Stakeholder recommendation
and identification
•Working database
•Staff analyzed roadways regionwide for above-average truck
traffic and percent truck traffic
•Identified the following proposals
for the working group’s
consideration
Summary
 State Freight Network and
Tier 1 Greater Houston
Freight System roads
 Local priorities highlighted
– Rail yards in near NE Houston
– E/W service in Bayport
– Cedar Bayou
 Connectivity to State
network enhanced for local
businesses
Greater Houston Freight Committee
Bruce C Mann | Director Freight Mobility | Port Houston
Port Houston Overview
$265
billion
Total
economic
value
16% of
state GDP
1.175
million
Jobs
generated
+148,000
since
2011
$261
million
Operating
revenue
+11.5%
year-onyear
Cash flow
+29%
year-onyear
$116
million
WELCOME MESSAGE | 2
Prioritized Project List
Column 1
Column 2
H - HIGH Priority
S - SHORT Term 0-5 yrs
M - MEDIUM Priority M - MID Term 5-10 yrs
L - LOW Priority
L - LONG Term 10+ yrs
WELCOME MESSAGE | 2
Project Map
WELCOME MESSAGE | 2
THANK YOU
Bruce C Mann
Director, Freight Mobility
Port Houston
Questions?
713.670.2641
[email protected]
www.PortHouston.com
111 East Loop North
Houston, TX 77029
WELCOME MESSAGE | 4
2
Powering Houston
Brenda Mainwaring
VP Public Affairs
Houston’s Railroad
Infrastructure
Vital to freight
transportation
and economic
growth
Source: HGAC
Houston Region
Freight Study
Approximate Industry/Customer and Spur Track locations
“Within the
Houston region,
the railroads
provide rail
service to more
than 900
customers.”
Source: TxDOT/HNTB
Source: TXDOT/HTNB, August 2007
Source: Houston-Galveston Area Council, June 2013



Rail volume is expected to increase from 152 million
tons in 2007 to 218 million tons in 2035.
Railroads carry more than 150 million tons of local
freight annually.
Railroads operate nearly 1,000 miles of track and 13
rail yards in the region.
Source: HGAC Regional Goods Movement
Source: Texas Department of Transportation, January 2016




“Between 2014 and 2040, total freight tonnage
moving in Texas is projected to increase by 88
percent from 2 billion to 3.8 billion tons.”
“Freight moved by rail is expected to increase from
398 million tons to 764 million tons by 2040, an
increase of 92 percent.”
Sixty-four percent of rail movement in Texas stays
within the state.
“Improvements at port, rail and intermodal
connections are necessary to improve access,
increase modal options, and decrease congestion.”
Source: TXDOT Texas Freight Mobility Plan


Railroads move more than 100 trains per day in
Houston - the equivalent of 20,000 truckloads.
Railroads invest billions of private dollars to ensure
that rail infrastructure meets demand.
 Between 2010 and 2015, railroads invested more than
$6 billion in Texas, including $750 million in Houston.
Rail is 3X cleaner and 4X more fuel efficient than
trucks on a ton-mile basis.
 Railroads can haul one ton of freight 479 miles on
one gallon of fuel.
