Iowa is a major exporter to ports all over the globe – aided by air, water, rail, and highway systems designed for commerce. The state’s central geographic location in the United States makes it easier to move products around the world. Two major coast-to-coast, border-to-border interstate arteries (Interstate 35 and Interstate 80) pass through Iowa and are principal roads in America’s transportation grid. Barge freight is accommodated via the Mississippi and Missouri rivers.
Iowa’s vast transportation system allows trucks to carry 80 percent of all manufactured freight transported in Iowa. The rest is moved by five major air cargo carriers, 20 railroad companies and 69 barge terminals on the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. Trucks move an average of 133 million tons of inbound freight and 163 million tons of outbound freight annually over Iowa’s highways.
Iowa State University (ISU) offers a Transportation and Logistics (TRLOG) program that is recognized as one of the top five in the United States.