Several commercial freight carriers are available based primarily out of the larger communities. Much of the goods and freight are imported or exported through these carriers. The Union Pacific Railroad currently maintains freight service south from Grand Junction to Delta and Montrose and east from Delta to the head of the North Fork Valley. The rail spur terminating in Montrose carries raw materials and products for Russell-Stover Candies, lumber, scrap metal, mining products such as concentrations and agricultural products such as fertilizer. The rail spur going east from Delta serves the coal-mining region in eastern Delta and northern Gunnison Counties along North Fork corridor.
Transportation is a challenge in the Region.
Distances are great and transportation costs are often high due to lack of backhaul opportunities and insufficient economies of scale. The local agriculture industry, in particular, has aggressively tackled the problem by offering mixed commodity load to its customers on the Front Range of Colorado to cut losses from empty or partially empty tractor-trailer backhaul situations. Another transportation challenge is the lack of public transit opportunities for workers and special populations such as the disabled. Some limited local transportation is available throughout the Region to senior citizens through community vans for that purpose. The ski areas also have small public transit systems available within their own communities and the immediate environs.