Project: I-20 Interchange

1.0 Synopsis

The $16 million Industrial Drive interchange just outside of Jackson, MI was completed in 2004. The purpose of the project was to improve access to Hawkins Field Industrial Park and Hawkins Field Airport. But the ultimate goal of the interchange was to trigger economic growth in the area by attracting more businesses. Based on research conducted by local sources, 150 to 175 new jobs resulted in new trucking-intensive firms who moved to the Industrial Park as a result of the improved access. The relocated interchange also removed traffic from local streets, leading to environmental and safety enhancements in surrounding neighborhoods.

2.0 Background

2.1 Location & Transportation Connections

Jackson, the capital and most populous city of the state of Mississippi, is mid-way between New Orleans and Memphis on I-55, which are about 200 miles south and north of Jackson (3.25 hours drive). The city is aligned east-west on I-20, halfway between Dallas and Atlanta, about 400 miles from each city. I-220, where the Industrial Drive Interchange is located, is an outer beltway connecting I-20 with I-55, running through Jackson's inner northwest suburbs.

Jackson is served by three U.S. highways: (i) U.S. Highway 49, north-south alignment bypassing the city via I-20 and I-220, (ii) U.S. Highway 51, north-south alignment going through the city center of Jackson and paralleling I-55 in the south part of Jackson and, (iii) U.S. Highway 80, and east-west road running parallel to I-20. Additionally, the city is served by two diagonal state highways: Mississippi Highway 18 serving east Jackson and Highway 25, serving the northeast.

Canadian National Railway and Kansas City Southern Railway provide national Class 1 freight links. Amtrak provides passenger rail linking Jackson with New Orleans, Memphis, Chicago, and with the college towns of Carbondale and Champaign in between. Jackson-Evers International Airport is 11 miles east of the city of Jackson. It provides regularly scheduled passenger service to twelve cities throughout the United States and is served by six carriers. Jackson was formerly served by Hawkins Field Airport in northwest Jackson. The new Industrial Interchange project improved access to Hawkins Field Airport, which is now used as a general aviation facility by private and corporate aircraft as well as for air cargo.

2.2 Community Character & Project Context

Jackson, Mississippi's capitol and its largest city, began to grow rapidly after the Civil War. The 1850 census counted 1,881 inhabitants; by 1900, the population had mushroomed to 8,000. By the mid-1940's, Jackson became Mississippi's biggest city. Today's Jackson, with 175,731 inhabitants, is the center of a metropolitan area of 541,000. In line with national trends, the city's has lost 12% of its population since 1980, but the surrounding suburbs have registered strong gains, adding over 175,000 people during the same time frame.

As of February 2010, the unemployment rate in the Jackson MSA was 9.5 percent, just under the national average. In 2008, according to Bureau of Economic Analysis data (BEA), the leading industries in Jackson MSA are government (13.3%), health care and social services (12.5%), retail trade (12.2 %), and manufacturing (12.4 %).

3.0 Project Description & Motives

The Industrial Drive interchange project, which created a new Exit 3 interchange off I-220, was conceived by the city of Jackson in the early 1990s to improve access to the Hawkins Field industrial park and Hawkins Field airport. At that time, access to the industrial park or airport was constrained. Vehicles were forced to exit I-220 either north (using exit 5) or south (using exit 2) of the existing Industrial Drive exit and drive through local streets to reach the industrial park or the airport.

Construction of the project finally started in 2001 following years of discussion with FHWA. There were capacity concerns about the project that were eventually overcome by updated travel demand modeling. Congress released a special appropriation for the $16 million (2004 dollars) project. Mississippi DOT provided part of the funding.

The project entailed the construction of a new grade-separated diamond interchange (Exit No. 3) off of I-220, an orbital beltway circling Jackson's northeast suburbs. Two of the four exit ramps are controlled by stop signs. The cost of the project, which was completed in 2004, was $15.9 million (2004 dollars). The Industrial Drive Interchange saves four to six miles for vehicles making round-trip runs to and from the industrial park. In surrounding neighborhoods, the project has reduced safety concerns and improved the environment in surrounding neighborhoods.

4.0 Project Impacts

4.1 Transportation Impacts

4.2 Demographic, Economic & Land Use Impacts

The ultimate motivation for the construction of the interchange was to trigger economic growth in the industrial park by attracting more businesses and to retain existing businesses. Since construction of the interchange, five companies moved to Hawkins Field industrial park and one has expanded. The five companies are: Jackson Cold Storage, UniFirst, Hesselbein Tire, Goggin Warehousing, Huttig Building Products. The company that expanded is Merchant's Foodservice.

Three of these companies identified the construction of the Industrial Drive interchange as the reason for locating at the park; these companies account for 150 to 175 new jobs that can that can be directly linked to the construction of the interchange. About 100 of these jobs are due to the Industrial Park's improved access to I-220. Another 50 to 75 new jobs were created by firms who moved to the industrial park due to the improved accessibility of Hawkins Field Airport to I-220, creating 50 to 75 additional jobs. These were trucking firms distributing air cargo from Hawkins Field to the surrounding region.

Traffic at Hawkins Field airport increased following the construction of the interchange. In 2006, Hawkins Field counted 57,393 operations, an increase of 0.7 percent compared to 2000. This is mainly due to the opening of a $930 million Nissan plant in 2003, thirty miles north of Jackson. After the new interchange was built Nissan, 23 miles away, moved its flight operations here from another local general aviation airport because of the access improvements reduced travel time and made Hawkins closer than the other airport. Hawkins Field Airport has proven to be a convenience for companies located in the industrial park and their suppliers.

5.0 Non-Transportation Factors

The project was not undertaken purely for transportation motives, the principal purpose of the interchange was to provide better access from I-220 into the industrial park. The project would not have been built if it was not proactively championed by local economic development officials and the private sector.

6.0 Resources

6.1 Citations

1. U.S. Census:http://www.census.gov/acs/www/Products/Profiles/Single/2002/ACS/Narrative/380/NP38000US3560.htm
2. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics:http://www.bls.gov/web/metro/laummtrk.htm
3. Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackson,_Mississippi, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interchange_(road)
4. Interstate Guide:http://www.interstate-guide.com/i-220_ms.html
5. Traffic Count:http://www.gomdot.com/Divisions/IntermodalPlanning/Resources/Maps/TrafficVolumeMaps.aspx

6.2 Interviews

Organizations

Greater Jackson Chamber of Commerce

Hesselbein Tire Company Inc

City of Jackson Public Works

Office of Economic Development City of Jackson

Hawkins Field Airport

Footnotes

Case Study Developed by Cambridge Systematics