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Photo by Bob Pennell USF Reddaway trucks await loads at the company's new freight terminal near Biddle and Hamrick roads. The $8 million terminal has 58 loading doors -- 26 more than the old one -- a truck shop and a truck wash. USF Reddaway opens larger terminal Central Point facility has 58 loading doors By DAVID PRESZLER CENTRAL POINT -- Four years in the making, USF Reddaway's new, larger trucking terminal opened Monday. The new facility, near the corner of Hamrick and Biddle roads, covers 20 acres and will allow the company to expand its West Coast operations and run them more efficiently. The old Biddle Road terminal, which was leased, covered 11.5 acres. "It's great," said terminal manager Bill Ullom of the new location. "This just puts everything together. It's a state-of-the-art thing." The new terminal has 58 loading doors -- 26 more than the old one. It cost about $8 million to build and covers 24,000 square feet. It also has a full truck shop -- something Reddaway's old home didn't have. The company has hired about 20 people to staff the shop, which Ullom said will make it easier for the company to keep its trucks up and running. The new terminal also has a 110-foot truck wash. About 150 drivers hauling 300 trailers pass through the local Reddaway terminal every day, Ullom estimated. It's a hub for Reddaway's shipping system. USF Reddaway, a subsidiary of USFreightways, is based in Clackamas and serves Oregon, Washington, California, Colorado, Utah, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Alaska and Wyoming. It specializes in less-than-truckload shipping. Company officials said the Central Point expansion is critical to handling the increasing volume of freight between California and the Northwest. It also will improve transit times on shipments moving into eastern Washington and Idaho. The company has been looking for an expansion site for four years. It had picked out a 20.5-acre site on Beall Lane but abandoned plans to expand there amid opposition from neighbors. Ullom said the new site should work well because it has better access to Interstate 5. The old site was on Biddle Road near Knutson Avenue, a busy area. The new one is just off the Central Point interchange. "That's a quick on and off for us," Ullom said. "It'll work out well." Today's Business Index Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA