CenterPoint Intermodal Center is an

intermodal freight Intermodal freight transport involves the transportation of freight in an intermodal container or vehicle, using multiple modes of transportation (e.g., rail, ship, aircraft, and truck), without any handling of the freight itself when changing m ...

terminal located in

Elwood, Illinois Elwood is a village in rural Will County, Illinois, United States, approximately 45 miles southwest of Chicago. The population was 2,229 at the 2020 United States census, down from 2,279 in 2010. History Elwood was founded in 1854 and incorpo ...

. It is the largest

inland port An inland port is a port on an inland waterway, such as a river, lake, or canal, which may or may not be connected to the sea. The term "inland port" is also used to refer to a dry port. Examples The United States Army Corps of Engineers publ ...

in North America. The Intermodal Center includes a 785-acre

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...

complex just south of Joliet and a 770-acre

BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three Transcontinental railroad, transcontine ...

complex further to the southwest. The facility's location was formerly part of the

Joliet Army Ammunition Plant Joliet Army Ammunition Plant (JOAAP, formerly known as the Joliet Arsenal) was a United States Army arsenal located in Will County, Illinois, near Elwood, Illinois, south of Joliet, Illinois. Opened in 1940 during World War II, the facility consis ...

. Construction of the Intermodal Center began as part of the Joliet Arsenal redevelopment effort after 2000. The village of Elwood supported this with $150 million of TIF funding.

Local concerns

As the freight traffic from Centerpoint grew, neighboring communities began to complain of safety, traffic and noise impacts. In 2014 the Village of Elwood attempted to enforce designated truck routes, but Centerpoint fought this in court. Elwood has also sued Centerpoint regarding the use of their TIF funds, claiming that the project has generated less revenue and fewer jobs than promised. Mayor Bill Offerman explained, "Instead of a vibrant retail base, good-paying jobs and needed tax dollars that it promised, CenterPoint has given us a barrage of heavy truck traffic that puts residents in harm's way, low-paying warehouse jobs that make it impossible for middle-class families to live on and a mere fraction of the revenue it touted (the village) would receive in return."

References

Container terminals Rail infrastructure in Illinois {{US-rail-transport-bio-stub