Freight plans

Several plans guide our development of a freight transportation system that supports the economic vitality of Washington state. Explore information on freight plans, rail plan, truck parking, and the PCC short line railroad.

The state's multimodal freight transportation system allows businesses in Washington to effectively compete in regional and global markets. Freight transportation is critical to supporting and growing jobs, more regional domestic product, as well as ensuring residents have the goods they need in their daily lives.

To learn more about how freight drives our state's economy, watch this Freight Virtual Tour video that was created to inform Legislators and the public on topics of importance to freight movement.

Washington Freight and Goods Transportation System

The Freight and Goods Transportation System (FGTS) is a classification system of multimodal freight corridors unique to Washington state, which classifies freight corridors for truck, rail, and waterways based on annual freight tonnage. WSDOT designates and updates the FGTS system every two years to meet state legislative requirements, support transportation planning processes, and inform freight investment decisions.

The 2023 FGTS update was released in December 2023, providing the following products:

2021 Washington Truck Parking Workshop

WSDOT and the Federal Highway Administration convened a series of truck parking workshops for stakeholders and government officials to discuss how the state's truck parking shortages may be addressed. Details can be found in the Synopsis of 2021 Washington Truck Parking Workshop (PDF 222KB). This is not a formal WSDOT report, but rather an overview of the discussion and recommendations made by the participants.

In 2022, WSDOT created a report on potential truck parking solutions (PDF 349KB) that could be considered by the Governor and the State Legislature for funding. Several of these options were ultimately included in the transportation budget.

2020 Washington Freight Stakeholder Group

Under the direction of the 2020 Washington State Legislature, WSDOT convened a freight stakeholder group to develop recommendations for a Washington freight advisory committee. The proposed committee will follow federal requirements found in the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act and other relevant legislation. This stakeholder group has completed its work and published the Freight Stakeholder Group Final Report (PDF 484KB).

Palouse River and Coulee City (PCC) Rail System Strategic Plan

The PCC Rail System Strategic Plan was completed in May 2015. The plan outlines the vision and goals for the system and communicates which policies and funding are needed to achieve the goals.

In 2023, the PCC system (PDF 316KB) received a $72.8 million grant from the Federal Railroad Administration that is being matched by $39.2 million in state, local and private funds. This provides a total project budget of $112 million for capital improvements.

Work is currently underway to begin construction in 2024. Improvements will include replacement of worn rail; replacement of rotten railroad ties; rebuilding dilapidated roadway crossings; and surfacing of tracks.

2019 Washington State Rail Plan

Serving freight and passengers, the rail system provides efficient transportation critical to maintaining our economy, environment and quality of life. We prepare a State Rail Plan every five years. Its purpose is to provide a framework for future actions that meets federal and state requirements.