Tennessee (state)

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Transportation

Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville, and Chattanooga are the focal points of transportation routes in Tennessee.

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Waterways

The Tennessee River is a much-used waterway navigable by barges and other shallow-draft vessels. The Tennessee section of the Cumberland River is also navigable. These two rivers are joined by a canal. In 1985 construction was completed on a project that joined the Tennessee and Tombigbee rivers with a canal in northeastern Mississippi and provided a shorter water route from Tennessee to the Gulf of Mexico. The western part of Tennessee is served by the Mississippi River. The state’s principal port is Memphis, on the east bank of the Mississippi.

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Railroads

Railroad mileage in the state totaled 4,199 km (2,609 mi) in 2004. As one of the few major bridging points across the lower Mississippi, Memphis is an important railroad junction. Goods originating in Tennessee and shipped by rail include chemicals (13 percent of total freight), food products (12 percent), glass and stone (14 percent) and coal (11 percent).

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Highways

Tennessee is served by 146,544 km (91,058 mi) of highway, including 1,778 km (1,105 mi) of the interstate highway system. The main east-west route is Interstate 40, which links Tennessee’s principal cities. Freeways oriented north-south include interstates 24 and 65, which cross in Nashville, and Interstate 75, which passes through Knoxville in the east.

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Airports

Tennessee had 8 airfields in 2009, most of which were private. Leading airports were in Nashville, the nation’s 37th busiest, Memphis, the 41st busiest, and Knoxville, 92nd busiest. Memphis is also an important hub for air-cargo transportation.

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