Letter to the Editor: Local Politics

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Paul Dempsey stated that the primary reason the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act failed was “local politics.”

The statement could not be more accurate.

Denver has had the opportunity to be one of the largest and most productive intermodal cities west of Chicago and east of Los Angeles.

Denver has had DIA airport for six-plus years, but has not paid any attention to the positive side of using the old Stapleton Airport as an intermodal hub.

The old runways on the north side of I-70 and the apron of the old airfreight facility are perfect for an intermodal yard. The runway concrete is more than two feet thick and would last forever. The runways were paid for from federal highway funds, which came from the fuel tax money of truckers. So why can’t we have the runways back to use as an intermodal facility?

The Union Pacific has a spur that comes in from the east and the Burlington Northern has a spur that could come down from the north. UP and BN bring into the city 600 to 900 units per day, of which 80% are delivered to customers within four miles of Stapleton.

The city could lease space to the intermodal companies to handle containers.

As a result of politics, that part of old Stapleton is to be turned into a low-income housing township, dead center in the middle of the largest industrial complex in the Midwest.

What do the railroads think of this? They plan to move their intermodal yards 20 miles east of 225 on I-70. That means the cost to ship intermodal will just increase by 25% to 40%. And it will increase truck traffic in the neighborhoods on the east side of Aurora.

John Page

resident

ogistics Management Services

rvada, Colo.

For this and more letters, see the May 6 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.

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