A Location That’s Ideal For Freight? Look No Further Than Pennsylvania’s I-99 Corridor
Learn how easy access to I-70, I-76 and I-80 as well as major markets on the East Coast and in the Midwest make for ideal logisitics in Pennsylvania's I-99 Corridor.
Easy access to I-70, I-76 and I-80 as well as major markets on the East Coast and in the Midwest make the I-99 Corridor attractive for distribution, warehousing and logistics companies. The region’s well-connected highway system has helped attract a number of major distribution operations including REI and Wal-Mart in Bedford County.
The I-99 Corridor already has
a wealth of high-quality business parks and ample, pad-ready acreage to support large-scale commercial companies and industries, and now even more business parks are being developed. For example, in 2015 the Bedford County Development Association completed work on the $2.4 million Bedford Business Park II, a 75-acre site.
In Blair County, preparations are complete for the 95-acre Martin J. Marasco Business Park, which will be the eighth business/industrial park in Blair County.
The new facility will be located off I-99. In all, the I-99 Corridor now has about 50 industrial parks and distribution centers that offer convenience and good travel routes to major East Coast, mid-Atlantic and Midwest markets.
Right on Track
Superior rail service provides another link in the region’s logistics chain with Class I carrier Norfolk Southern Railway and the region’s two short line operators
in Everett Railroad and Nittany & Bald Eagle Railroad. The I-99 Corridor’s position as a rail center is also underscored by several major maintenance and repair companies, including Norfolk Southern’s Juniata Locomotive Shop in Altoona that serves as the rail carrier’s largest locomotive repair facility. Also, ORX in Tipton and Curry Rail Services in Hollidaysburg each maintain large operations in the region.
Jet Set
Two commercial airports – Altoona-Blair County Airport and University Park Airport – serve the region, while a third facility, Bedford County Airport, serves general aviation aircraft and a charter service.
Altoona-Blair County Airport in Martinsburg averages 65 operations per day, including jet service four times daily and three times on weekends to Pittsburgh. “We offer a concierge level of service that would typically be found on private planes,” says Tracy Plessinger, manager of Altoona-Blair County Airport. Total passengers boarded surpassed 284,000 at the airport in 2014. Rodgers adds that University Park underwent a $10 million upgrade in 2016 that allows future corporate hangars to be constructed on a general aviation apron. “Companies looking to put down roots along the I-99 Corridor can know that they will have access to our top-notch airport,” he says. “The entire corridor is certainly well served by the transportation industry these days.”