Upper Merion Votes to Send Approximately 500 FedEx Trucks Through West Conshohocken

Upper Merion Township’s Board of Supervisors voted recently to approve a new FedEX Distribution Center at 600 River Road in the township. As you will learn, the township worked it out with Fed Ex to keep the trucks off the township’s roads as much as possible and instead have them utilize the exits to the highways in West Conshohocken. So while Upper Merion wants to reap the benefit of the development, it doesn’t want to have the impact of what the development brings.

The Times Herald has a complete story on this now approved project. Below are some excerpts.

Site plans for a $52 million FedEx ground distribution building on River Road were approved by the board of supervisors Thursday following a recommendation by the township planning commission.

The 305,733-square-foot, one-story building at 600 River Road will have a main driveway entrance on River Road and a right-turn only exit driveway for delivery trucks onto Flint Hill Road. The development will have 601 parking spaces, and three smaller buildings on the property will total 10,164 square feet.

“The largest trailers will mostly come to the facility in off-peak hours,” said engineer Daniel Disario, representing SunCap. “During that time, there will be 250 trailers arriving each day and 250 trailers leaving the facility each day during the holiday season.”

McClure said that the trucks would not use Route 320.

“Most of the trucks will use Route 23 through West Conshohocken to the Blue Route,” McClure said. “All the large tractor-trailers are mandated to exit onto River Road.”

Below is a Facebook post from Greg Waks (D), a supervisor in Upper Merion, announcing the deal:

Last night the Board of Supervisors approved a FedEx ground distribution facility in the Swedeland portion of Upper…

Posted by Upper Merion Supervisor Greg Waks on Friday, March 27, 2015

What is interesting about this is that West Conshohocken has been taking an active role in fighting the expansion of Lower Merion’s school bus depot on Matsonford Road, yet we haven’t heard about this until now, after its approved.

We are going to try to find out if West Conshohocken even knew about this deal and its opinion on it.