The South Fulton Community Improvement District (CID) is helping the area’s freight network coexist with the local community. That’s why they applied for and won a Freight Cluster Grant from the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC): $320,000 to review the area’s infrastructure and commuting patterns to create a sustainable freight network. The study will focus on a district–wide strategy for:  

• improving workers’ quality of life 
• reducing greenhouse gas emissions 
• improving efficiency in freight transportation 
• enhancing supply chain resilience 
• supporting sustainable transportation practices.
  

The CID intends to hire an expert consulting team in early 2025 to implement this plan.  

Study limits 

The study area is located along I-85, partially within the cities of Palmetto, Fairburn, Union City, and South Fulton and entirely within Fulton County. The study will include major warehouses, manufacturing, and industrial sites 3 – 5 miles outside the area to find solutions that won’t disrupt the long-distance freight network. 

What’s the CID doing? 

Starting in early 2025, the South Fulton CID will study the area’s freight network and how to make it more sustainable. The improvements they’ll look into include: 

• Reducing greenhouse gases: using more alternative fuels, electric vehicles. 

• Making freight more efficient: finding better routes for trucks, supporting intermodal transportation. 

• Supporting the supply chain: reducing idling time for trucks, reusing and recycling products, and improving worker conditions 

• Improving site sustainability: adding green roofs, water recycling, solar power, etc.  

• District-wide improvements: increasing walking paths, green space, and transport options for workers and residents. 

Why invest in freight sustainability? 

The South Fulton CID Board is committed to improving transportation and the community. They’ve chosen to address sustainability as one step in this process. With the CSX Intermodal Shipping Terminal linking trucking and rail routes, plus Fairburn’s largest warehouses like US Foods, SC Johnson, Clorox, Duracell and more, the area is an integral link to moving goods in and out of the southeast.  

The supply chain in the South Fulton CID area employs thousands of workers, and investing in it means future-proofing the profits. Updating buildings, trucks, and supply chain practices to be more sustainable saves non-renewable resources and creates infrastructure that companies can rely on in the long term.  

The more that South Fulton’s companies put into creating safe and accessible work sites, efficient route choices, alternative fueling support, and eco-friendly site practices like solar panels or impervious paving in parking lots, the more they’ll profit from their network running smoothly and making the most of all their resources.