In October of 2003, Union Pacific Railroad Corporation opened its largest intermodal hub, Global Intermodal III, located just 30 miles south of the airport in Rochelle, IL. Stretching across nearly 700 acres, this $181 million hub provides warehouse and distribution facilities outside of the heavily-congested Chicago area.

Located at the intersection of Interstate Highways 39 an 88, the hub has already drawn a number of businesses to expand or locate in the area. These include a $9.8 million, 150,000-square-foot warehouse for Sara Lee, a new 349,000-square-foot refrigerated distribution center for ConAgra, a 576,000-square-foot distribution center for Rayovac, and a 21-acre distribution center for Boise Corporation.

• The intermodal hub will handle 720,000 containers annually once it is fully operational.

• The processing time for a truck once it enters the facility will be between 45 seconds and one minute. The national average is four to five minutes.

• Union Pacific bought 1,200 acres for the hub project. About 700 acres have been developed, with the remaining land available for expansion.

• The cargo hub has 15 tracks – two for receiving and departing trains, and 13 are used to sort cars by destination.

More Information