Intermodal freight transport involves the transportation of freight in standardized shipping containers using multiple modes (rail, water and highway) without re-handling the cargo. This method reduces cargo handling, and so improves security, reduces damages and losses and allows freight to be transported faster. Companies save time and money by using the most efficient mode of transportation for each portion of a trip and conducting easy transfers between modes.

Intermodal rail transportation is the fastest growing transportation sector and it is projected to grow 65 percent by 2020. Reasons for the rapid growth in intermodal freight traffic include increases in international trade, e-commerce and rapid-order fulfillment as well as the public policy issues of truck transportation (congestion, safety and air quality).

A large-scale intermodal rail facility can generate tremendous economic development, enhance market accessibility for existing manufacturers and relieve congestion from over-burdened highways. The facilities can raise competitiveness of area companies and attract extensive spin-off investments from related industries and services. Although inland rail ports are being built across the country, there is still great demand for these facilities as freight traffic increases. Chicago is the world's largest rail hub. According to the Chicago Area Transportation Study, the Chicago area will need more than 7,000 additional acres for intermodal rail ports by 2020. But Chicago has less than half that much land available.

As the "Crossroads of America," the state of Indiana is uniquely well positioned to realize tremendous economic impacts through the development of intermodal rail facilities. The central location, proximity to a major metropolitan market as well as the access to interstates and multiple Class I rail lines give the state a unique opportunity to nurture intermodal growth. Benefits for Indiana include expanding the tax base, improving the values of property, enhancing the economies of existing communities, building new capacity, investing in current technology, creating job opportunities for Hoosiers and attracting talented workers.