nymtc regional freight plan - New York Metropolitan Transportation ...

A Freight Plan for the NYMTC Region
The major obstacle to constructing urban freight villages is acquiring sufficient land. Most
suburban freight villages are larger than 125 acres. Such a large parcel of contiguous
vacant property is difficult to assemble in most urban areas, even when brownfields are
available for re-use. However, the public sector can play an important role by sponsoring
economic development initiatives such as local redevelopment zones, in-place industrial
parks, and brownfields redevelopment programs targeting freight villages.
Four potential freight village sites identified to date are summarized below and shown in
Figure 5.6.
1. Maspeth, Queens – Development of this site centers on the vacant 27-acre Phelps Dodge
industrial site adjacent to the Montauk (west) Branch of the LIRR and in the center of a
large complex of warehousing, distribution, and manufacturing facilities. Connections
to the regional highway system are excellent. Rail connections are adequate for bulk
goods but not for intermodal traffic such as TOFC due to clearance restrictions and
operational conflicts. Marine access via Newtown Creek also is possible. Further
development and expansion of this site into an intermodal yard is addressed below in
regard to the Cross Harbor rail tunnel.
2. South Brooklyn Waterfront, Brooklyn – Further development could be encouraged at this
site by improving access to the Gowanus Expressway and to the Brooklyn rail
infrastructure.
3. Harlem River Yard, The Bronx – This site enjoys the strongest rail and highway connections
of the sites under consideration, as evidenced by the large number of existing
warehousing and distribution facilities in the surrounding area. However, the Harlem
River Yard lacks available land for core rail facilities. This shortage has become more
pronounced due to an influx of non-transportation-related development at the yard itself.
4. Pilgrim State Hospital Site, Suffolk County – A freight village on this site, while suburban
in character, would function to some degree as an urban village because truck access
to central Long Island is constrained by the need to pass through the severe congestion
of New York City. The site has ready access to the Heartland Industrial Park, and the
potential exists for further industrial development of the state hospital site. Other land
uses in the area are primarily residential, but impacts could be buffered by the large
amount of available land at the complex. The major drawback to this site is the heavy
passenger train traffic on the LIRR mainline, which limits the size and frequency of
possible rail deliveries to Pilgrim.
Transportation Impacts
It is difficult to analyze the impacts of freight village projects in isolation from the related
projects that would provide the rail and/or highway connections needed to make the
freight villages a success. To the extent that these projects encourage the regional diversion
of freight shipments from truck to rail or water modes, they can improve traffic
operations. Although increased truck traffic in the vicinity of the yards could impact local
traffic, most truck movements tend to occur outside peak commuter hours. Consolidating
a variety of freight shipment and industrial activities within a single site could reduce the
need for intermediate truck trips.
Cambridge Systematics, Inc. 5-30