SOMERSET The proposed Kentucky TriModal Transpark in Warren County could face competition in the rolling foothills of Appalachia from a smaller intermodal park planned for the Somerset area. The first thought that comes to my mind is, it validates the concept of pulling together modes of transportation because those things are very attractive and needed by modern industry, said Dan Cherry, president of the Inter-Modal Transportation Authority, which oversees the development of the KTT in Warren County. The next thought … is in some respects it could represent some competition, Cherry said. The Kentucky TriModal Transpark is a proposed business/industrial park northeast of Bowling Green that could eventually grow to 4,000 acres and include a replacement airport for the Bowling Green-Warren County Regional Airport. By comparison, the intermodal park planned for the Somerset area is a 200-acre industrial/intermodal facility, which will be served by rail and Interstate 75 with no plans for air service, said Jim Coleman, manager of industrial development for East Kentucky Power Cooperative. Rather than being an intermodal park thats a destination, ours is more of (a park offering) services that will be provided for industries in southeastern Kentucky, said Michael Hayes, president of the board of directors for the Somerset-based Southern Kentucky Economic Development Corporation. Hayes doesnt see the SKEDC intermodal park as competition for the KTT because the two parks, while they are both intermodal facilities, will likely attract a different type of clientele, Hayes said. Inter-Modal Transportation Authority officials in Warren County are hopeful to attract New Economy/high-tech jobs and companies that need quick access to Interstate 65.The SKEDC intermodal park will serve industries such as the automotive industry that use the I-75 corridor that runs from Detroit to Tampa, Hayes said. In fact the businesses that would look in this area are geared more toward the Interstate 75 corridor. Its not often that they are looking in the Bowling Green corridor, he said. This one would (serve) general industry related to automotive and plastics because they are typical rail users, he added. The park will include industrial space as well as an intermodal component to attract freight traffic, Hayes said. This has been designed and requested from the Southern Kentucky Economic Development Corporation to attract industrial employers to that region of Kentucky, said Dan DuBray, spokesman for U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Somerset, who helped secure funding for the Somerset-area facility. The location of the intermodal park hasnt been decided. But, of the 27 counties served by the SKEDC, Laurel, Whitley and Knox counties appear to be the best suited for an intermodal facility those counties are closest to I-75 and have rail access, Coleman said. Currently, there are no industrial sites with rail access in the region, Hayes said. There are companies that need the freight, Hayes said. Anyone handling freight or plastics, its a lot cheaper to bring it in on rail. My understanding is, if you can consolidate your freight handling on one spot and shorten your truck hauls, it just helps with everything, Hayes said, not only freight costs but inventory control. Two railroad lines, CSX and Norfolk-Southern, run through the region. I-75 also winds through the mountainous region and the proposed Interstate 66 route would pass through Somerset. Were starting analysis working with the two railroads, Hayes said. We havent decided which railroad line would be best. Hopefully, we will be able to determine a site this summer. The project is expected to be completed within two to three years, he said. Rogers was able to wrangle $5 million in the federal transportation appropriations bill for the Somerset-area intermodal transportation park to serve new and/or existing businesses throughout southern and eastern Kentucky. Having this sort of access to raw materials and finished other goods to go out by truck, thats an attractive asset to an industrial employer, DuBray said. It is estimated that this project could create 1,000 new jobs within a 10-year period. Thats good news to the regions unemployed. Most of the counties surrounding Somerset have a slightly higher unemployment rate than the counties surrounding Bowling Green. For example, in Pulaski County the unemployment rate was 9 percent in January and in Knox County the rate was 8.3 percent. Warren Countys unemployment rate was 5.3 percent in January, while neighboring Logan County had 9.9 percent rate. Workers in the Somerset and surrounding counties are also making less money than workers in the Bowling Green area. In 1999 the per capita income for the Barren River Area Development District was $20,758. In the Lake Cumberland area (which includes Somerset) the per capita income was $16,622. In the Cumberland Valley region that includes Knox County the per capita income was $16,259. The statewide per capita income for 1999 was $23,227. While the intermodal park could be competition for the KTT, Cherry said KTT is up to the challenge. Competition in a free market society is inevitable and generally a good thing for citizens. Were certainly not afraid of that, Cherry said. Its the good, old American way and we will compete well with whoever the competition is.