Inland Port Informational Meeting Scheduled in Effingham

Partners-4-Effingham County's Growth (an alliance of the Effingham County Chamber of Commerce, City of Effingham, Effingham County and Effingham County Economic Development Foundation) along with Ameren Illinois, will host an informational session on the Midwest Inland Port, an emerging transportation and logistics hub in Decatur.

Larry Altenbaumer, Interim President of the Economic Development Corporation of Decatur and Macon County and Mark Schweitzer, ADM Director of Intermodal Freight, will lead a presentation providing an overview of the capabilities of the Midwest Inland Port and an explanation of the opportunities the Midwest Inland Port brings to Effingham County and the surrounding area.

The meeting will take place on Friday, January 31 from 8:30 to 10:30am at the Holiday Inn in Effingham.  Attendees can make a reservation by contacting the Effingham County Chamber office at 342-4147.

The Midwest Inland Port is a conglomeration of transportation assets delivering both domestic and international flexibility.  Some of the more notable attributes include:

--Intermodal Ramp--private ownership with direct access to three Class 1 railroads

--Three Class 1 Railroads--CN, CSX and Norfolk Southern

--Five major roadways--Interstates 72, 55, 74 and 57 and US Highway 51

--Airport--Category 1 Instrument landing system with runways capable of supporting wide-body aircraft

--Foreign Trade Zone--duty-free commerce

--Customs Clearing--local and efficient

--Market Proximity--95 million consumers within 500-mile radius

Located on the grounds of Archer Daniels Midland, the intermodal ramp of the Midwest Inland Port is served by the Norfolk Southern, Canadian National and CSX railroads.  This provides lower cost and efficient shipping options to the east, west and Gulf Coast bypassing the congestion of Chicago, St. Louis and Indianapolis.

Altenbaumer said the new intermodal ramp is just the first step in the development of the Midwest Inland Port.  He said the long term strategy for the Port is to integrate truck, rai and air cargo operations currently present in Decatur and Macon County into a logistics and distribution hub for Central Illinois.  The Economic Development Corporation recently formed the Midwest Inland Port LLC, which will act as an information clearinghouse and marketing entity for the Midwest Inland Port.