There are two main objectives of the Freight Movement and Intermodal Access in Kentucky Study (SPR 98-189) that is being undertaken by the Kentucky Transportation Center for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC): 1) evaluation of the access for trucks between intermodal or other truck generating sites and the National Highway System (NHS); and 2) furthering the understanding of freight commodity flows throughout the state. This report summarizes the access evaluation for one cluster of facilities located in Fulton county in the Purchase Area Development District (ADD) and KYTC Highway District #1. The location of the site in the town of Hickman is shown in Figure 1. Work on other specific sites as well as the freight commodity flow task are on-going and are documented elsewhere.
The sites to be evaluated were selected from two existing databases (a truck facility survey from 1994 and the intermodal facility inventory) based on ADD and KYTC Highway District planner recommendations, geographic location, distance to the national highway system, and the number of trucks accessing the site. Consideration was also made for the freight type handled and transportation modes used. This cluster of facilities comprises the Hickman riverport area on the Mississippi River. It includes Continental Grain Company Dock, Hickman-Fulton County Riverport Authority and the Bunge Corporation (Hickman Grain Elevator). The first two sites are shown in Figure 2. The third site is to the left of the picture edge (west). These sites were recommended for study by the KYTC Division of Transportation Planning on the recommendation of the Western Kentucky Development Corporation.
The site was visited July 7, 1998 for video taping and July 17, 1998 for data collection and field evaluation. A phone survey was conducted with facility managers early in the study before site work. Surveys were completed with the Hickman-Fulton Riverport Authority and the Continental Grain Company but repeated attempts to contact the Bunge Corporation failed. Survey responses can be found in Appendix A. Between the two facilities contacted 75 trucks per day (150 two way truck trips) access the riverport area. The managers indicated the commodities handled consisted of grains, steel, sand, fertilizer and coke. Truck traffic is relatively constant throughout the day and year, although one manager referred to backups during the harvest season between July and October. These backups are a result of delays in weighing and processing the trucks at the port facilities rather than a particular deficiency in road capacity or conditions. The largest truck accessing the area was indicated as a 45 foot semi tractor trailer. Given that 45 feet is not a common length of trucks, calculations in this report used a 48 foot length. The managers at Continental Grain indicated the common truck accessing their facility was smaller, only 34 to 36 feet in length
