Oakridge is in a strategic location as a distribution center by land, rail, air, and deep water ports. Thirty-five miles to the west is Interstate 5, the major freeway connecting Canada and Mexico via California, Oregon, and Washington. Approximately fifty miles to the east is State Highway 97 connecting Oregon, California, Washington and points to the east. Oakridge is approximately halfway between Seattle and San Francisco.
TRANSPORTATION MODES
Land:
State highway 58 runs through Oakridge and connects Interstate 5 and State highway 97, providing overnight trucking services to Los Angeles and Salt Lake City; and 72-hour service to Phoenix and Denver. Industry leaders such as WalMart and JB Hunt use Highway 58 because it is shorter and has fewer elevation changes between California and destinations in Oregon and Washington.
Rail:
Running through Oakridge is Union Pacific’s main north/south line serving 23 states in the western two-thirds of the United States with cargo shipping services. Amtrak shares the UP line providing passenger service to nationwide destinations.
Air:
Eugene Airport, a regional terminal, provides passenger and cargo air service with easy access to all world markets. Allegiant, United Airlines, Delta, and Horizon connect passengers to all major destinations. Air cargo carriers are Horizon, FedEx, and UPS.
Ports:
Oakridge is in close proximity to three international deep water ports, Coos Bay, Newport, and Portland for full-sized freighters. Oregon ports are a full day closer to Asian countries than Los Angeles.
Labor Force Transportation:
The Diamond Express Bus runs three trips inbound and outbound on weekdays between Oakridge and Eugene/Springfield. Find them online at: http://www.ltd.org/diamondex/ Bicycle racks are provided and connections to Lane Transit are conveniently across the street from the Eugene drop off. Eugene LTD Bus schedules may be found on the following website: http://www.ltd.org.
REACHING CUSTOMERS AND MARKETS
Land:
Delivery to markets on either side of the Cascades Mountains is easily accessed via the Interstate Highway System (I-5) 35 miles west of Oakridge and 50 miles east on State Highway 97. Over 4,000 trucks pass through Oakridge daily, representing 15 regional and national trucking lines.
Rail:
There is an existing railroad spur connecting the main UP line running through Oakridge and the Oakridge Industrial Park, [OIP]. Since the lumber industry closed operations in Oakridge in 1989, the spur has not been used. The UP may have an interest in developing the line if there is a minimum of 20 car movements per year, [as per Oakridge City Administrator]. An alternative is the easy access between the OIP and the UP switching yard in Oakridge. Lowboy cargo truck trailers could be used to move freight the short distance to the transfer point to rail cars.
Union Pacific Railroad is interested in providing transload services in Oakridge. The steps to qualifying a business, truck equipment, and the commodities being hauled may be found at http://www.upds.com/customers/carload/transload/index.shtml
Options for a truck rail interface are available in Eugene through A & M Reload: http://www.amreload.com/contact.htm.
Air:
The Oakridge State Airport, FAA Identifier 5 SO, is approximately 1 mile west of the city an elevation of 1393 ft (est.). There is an asphalt runway in good condition and is 3610 ft by 47 ft wide. The Oakridge Airport is ideal for small planes carrying business passengers. For detailed specifications visit: http://www.airnav.com/airport/5S0
The Eugene Municipal Airport [EUG] is 37.9 nautical miles away. It is the fifth largest airport in the Pacific Northwest, second busiest in Oregon, and the largest non-hub airport In the nation. Portland International Airport [PDX] is 110.2 nautical miles.
Eugene Airport www.fly eug.com.
Land:
Highway 58 is a well established truck route. The Oregon Trucking Associations, Inc. is one resource for finding suitable ground transportation services. Visit this web site for contact information for a variety of trucking companies: http://www.ortrucking.org/carriersearchresults.asp
Ports:
Visit the following sites for information on shipping:
OTHER CONTACT INFO:
Burlington Northern/Santa Fe http://www.bnsf.com 206-625-6171
Union Pacific http://www.uprr.com 800-877-0513
Union Pacific General Information http://www.uprr.com/customers/index.shtml
Union Pacific Pricing http://www.uprr.com/customers/price_inquiry.shtml?dropdown
Union Pacific’s Door to Door service http://www.up.com/customers/prospective/door-to-door.shtml
Union Pacific Rate Quotes http://www.up.com/customers/prospective/contact_us.shtml