Good day to anyone reading,
I'll start by saying I am brand new to the forums and this is my first post. I understand this DLC is likely a long way off but I've been thinking about it a lot as I play this stunning game and explore. I saw Illinois is coming up, and that's not too far away from us here in Ohio. There already seem to be a few posts like mine that mention Ohio, but none I've seen really hit the areas I think of the most when I think trucking
I'm an Ohio native and the area I have called home for my entire life also happens to be the home of a massive and ever growing trucking hub. With 3 new truck stops and dozens of new logistics-related businesses opening just in the last 3 years, this area is set to continue expanding as a dominant trucking hub of south Columbus and Central Ohio. My dad is also a veteran trucker of 20 years and I will be using some information from his travels, as he works locally here.
I will also be using information from the Franklin County Engineer's Office, from a report detailing a 2023 project of over 58 million dollars to expand and improve roadway infrastructure. You need to understand the entire scope of this region, its interconnectedness, and its reliance on surrounding roads and businesses.
The area I'm referring to is primarily Alum Creek Drive, specifically the areas of Obetz, Groveport, Lockbourne, and Rickenbacker. But do not forget about Bixby Road, Groveport Road, Williams Road, route 23, and route 317, which also serve as vital passageways for the trucking industry to move millions and millions of tons of cargo and tens of thousands daily commuters who staff the relative businesses. These highly lucrative and popular routes all feed into Alum Creek Drive and provide numerous ways for locals to get to work every day to keep this industry moving forward and earn an honest living.
There also exists several businesses that provide a vital role in supporting the local trucking industry. Namely, places like TNT truck washing and even Ricart Automotive, the nations largest car dealership/mega mall. Ricart provides diesel mechanic services to certain trucks and they service most of the local emergency service vehicles, including major fire/EMS apparatuses. Ricart is located on route 317 and Williams Road.
The city of Groveport is home to its own trucking hub, primarily in the area of Green Pointe Drive South, albeit much smaller than that of Obetz and Alum Creek. But you will quickly see on a map that it all connects back to Alum Creek eventually.
The City of Obetz is home to several present and future truck stops, gas stations, restaurants, warehouses, distribution centers, and much more. Williams Road, in Obetz, connects directly to Alum Creek and has several warehouses and distribution centers of its own. There is also a large auto auction/car lot called Copart there, which utilizes car haulers and hotshot drivers on a daily basis. Next door are several businesses, including a major Cement and Materials company.
In Obetz, there are also many logistics businesses connected to and reliant on rail and container shipping.
Lockbourne and Lockbourne Road are also home to many companies in the related industries, including some service centers, and Lockbourne is a popular and expanding route that connects to the city of Grove City. Which is also another major trucking route. And that's the thing about Columbus and the I-270 loop, all of our towns have increasingly become more connected by trucking and rely on it to sustain our economies. Without I-270 and these local routes, life here on this scale would simply be impossible. Look at population statistics before the trucking boom in Central Ohio. Properly representing these towns is crucial.
In the Alum Creek region, virtually every businesses has come to rely on Rickenbacker International Airport in some way. I have personally worked at this airport in the logistics industry. The volume of freight moving through here is not to be understated. This serves as a logistics hub not only for civilian and commercial uses, but also federal and military, as this used to be an Air Force base and there remains a small military presence. I personally assisted in unloading cargo airliners and sorting/staging the freight to be ready for transport by truck and rail. Go to this airport and see it for yourself as this is where most of it starts.
Then there's Bixby Road, which often serves as a small shortcut between 317, Groveport Road, and Alum Creek Drive. Bixby Road is home to a metro park, Amstead Rail Griffin Wheel (a manufacturer), and the AEP power station which uses the same rail as them. It also has a small water hauling trucking company.
Groveport Road may not have quite so many businesses directly on it, but it serves as one of the main passageways for all thru and local traffic, connecting the cities of Columbus, Obetz, Groveport, and Canal Winchester.
According to the Franklin County Engineer's Office (FCEO), Alum Creek Drive connects the Rickenbacker International Airport to the Interstate 270 outer-belt; as a result, it is part of the National Highway System and the National Primary Freight Highway System. Central Ohio is within 600 miles of 60% of the U.S. and Canadian population. To exclude this region would be a major mistake and I would very much like to see these under represented towns in the game. My hometown and the surrounding communities support this massive industry and keep it alive.
Below, I am going to paste information directly from the FCEO report I am using for my information. I will also post the link to their full report at the end of this post. LOOK AT THESE NUMBERS and consider that this report was written in 2023, and this area has since seen even greater expansion
This concludes my written portions, I sincerely hope this information is used in the future development of an Ohio DLC and that my hometown is properly represented. I will check this for replies should anyone have questions!
Thank you for reading!
"Franklin County, located in central Ohio at the crossroads of Interstate 70 and Interstate 71, is home to Columbus, the state capital and fourteenth largest city in the country and The Ohio State
University, the state’s flagship university. Here, the Franklin County Engineer’s Office (FCEO)
maintains 259 miles of roadway and 357 bridges. Alum Creek Drive is a primary north/south
principal arterial roadway in the southeast region of Franklin County. This roadway is currently a
four-lane divided roadway within the jurisdictions of Franklin County and the City of Obetz. Per
ODOT recent traffic counts, the Average Daily traffic volume on this section of Alum Creek Drive
is approximately 36,000 vehicles per day with 17.6% of that coming from truck traffic."
"Alum Creek Drive provides the primary connection of the Rickenbacker International Airport,
Norfolk Southern Intermodal Terminal, and USDOT's Primary Freight Highway System. This
roadway provides the primary access to the roadway and highway systems from these points of
cargo entry. This is the first and last mile for millions of tons of cargo entering and leaving the
Midwest. This connection to the supply chain is vital to the region’s economy.
Alum Creek Drive is also identified as a segment in the ODOT Strategic Transportation System,
as well as being designated as part of the National Highway System (NHS)."
"The Alum Creek Drive area is primarily developed with warehouses and distribution centers with
a significant amount of undeveloped property in the area. As development continues to occur,
congestion and delays in the corridor are increasing. The amount of traffic congestion contributes
to more crashes. Also of note is the higher-than-average truck traffic along Alum Creek Drive. The
statewide average in Ohio on urban principal arterials is 4.41% for truck traffic, while Alum Creek
Drive routinely accommodates 17.6% truck traffic.
The FCEO has been monitoring this corridor for several years and performed a study in 2017 to
determine the needed improvement investment for the corridor based on crash history at that time.
This project was considered in the Rickenbacker Area Study finalized in 2018 by MORPC.
In the interim, the FCEO and other organizations have invested in and upgraded several of the
intersections along the Alum Creek Drive corridor to manage the safety and congestion problems
at these locations."
https://www.franklincountyengineer.org/ ... 282023.pdf
and Chicago 