Local and state stakeholders meet Thursday to talk about how goods move through Southwest Florida. It’s the subject of the Southwest Florida Freight Summit. They’ll talk about the challenges facing the region and individual counties.
Donald Scott is the executive director of the Lee County Metropolitan Planning Organization. He’s scheduled to give the closing address at the summit. He said the main challenge for the county is growth.
“We’re growing by about 400,000 people by 2040, but with that comes trying to get goods and freight to the people,” he said.
He said trucks alone bring in about 10 million tons worth of goods. That’s projected to grow to 17 million tons by 2040.
Scott said future challenges for the region include the Miami airport. He said it’s about at capacity for moving goods. Solutions could involve using airports in more rural areas to bring in goods.
The summit features representatives from Glades, Lee and Collier Counties, as well as businesses.
