Columbus, OH

Intermodal container traffic in Columbus, OH is anchored by the Rickenbacker Global Logistics Park, where rail, truck, warehousing, and international air cargo are concentrated in one massive inland logistics complex. Norfolk Southern’s Rickenbacker Intermodal Terminal can handle more than 400,000 containers annually and is served by double-stack trains carrying both domestic and international containers. The terminal reports an unusually high international mix, with about 75% of traffic being international containers, so there's an abundance of 20ft, 40ft, and 40ft high-cube conex containers in Central Ohio.

Columbus is also a key point on Norfolk Southern’s Heartland Corridor, which was upgraded to allow double-stacked ocean containers to move efficiently between East Coast seaports and the Midwest. Rickenbacker’s location near I-270, combined with surrounding distribution centers and service from both Norfolk Southern and CSX in the broader logistics park, allows containers to move quickly from long-haul rail into local trucking and warehousing networks. Even though Columbus isn’t a large metro area in terms of population, the containers being emptied out into warehouses for distribution creates a surplus of used conex containers in Columbus. This causes 20ft, 40ft, and 40ft high cube container prices to be lower in Columbus than most other inland rail hubs.