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State Profiles | Transportation!

Transportation

Tennessee shares a border with eight states making our location convenient and economical for moving freight and products across the United States and abroad. Not only is the state located in the heart of the South, but it has valuable accessibility to market and workforce resources.

Tennessee’s location places it within a day’s drive of more than three-quarters of the major U.S. markets. The state’s transportation network offers immediate access to eight interstates, several major river ports, international and regional airports, and extensive railways that allow for quick and efficient shipping to anywhere in the world.

Airways

Tennessee has developed air transportation through two strategic avenues: Commercial Service (CS) Airports and General Aviation (GA) Airports. The six CS airports have invested heavily in cargo handling infrastructure to meet the demands of businesses. For instance, Memphis International Airport has been the world’s largest cargo airport for more than 18 years and continues to enjoy this distinction. The 74 General Aviation airports offer just-in-time shipping opportunities that have been utilized by large scale manufacturing operations.

Read a detailed description of Tennessee’s airways.

Highways

Tennessee's road system stretches over 87,000 miles, enough to circle the world more than three times. Of that, about 14,000 miles are totally maintained by the state. Those 14,000 miles represent 16% of the total highway miles within Tennessee, but they carry approximately 75% of the traffic.

Included in the state highway system are more than 1,100 miles of interstate highways. Although the interstate system makes up just over 1% of the total highway mileage, it carries approximately one quarter of all the traffic in Tennessee. Our location puts us within one day of 75% of the major U.S. markets and within 600 miles of 48% of the nation's population.

Read a detailed description of Tennessee’s highways.

Railways

Tennessee has one of the South’s most extensive rail systems, with more than 3,200 miles of main and shortline railroads. Tennessee’s three main rail systems are CSX, Norfolk Southern and Canadian National/Illinois Central, with 22 shortline railroads across the state.

Read a detailed description of Tennessee’s railways.

Waterways

Tennessee is centrally located on the nation’s inland waterway system. The Tennessee, Mississippi and Cumberland Rivers and their tributaries supply water transport opportunities to many communities across the state. Tennessee enjoys the benefit of more than 1,062 miles of navigable waterways across the state. The Tennessee inland water system connects terminals on the Tennessee, Cumberland and Mississippi Rivers and their tributaries with river ports in 21 states and ocean ports in Houston, Texas; New Orleans, Louisiana; and Mobile, Alabama. The Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway provides Tennessee with direct access to the Gulf of Mexico harbors and international markets.

Read a detailed description of Tennessee’s waterways.