Ingrams August 2023

east to west, Interstate 70 links the na tion’s capital with the Mountain West, where it merges into other lines feeding major west-coast cities. Somewhat less traveled but still vi tal to interstate commerce, northbound I-29 originates in Kansas City and makes its way to the Canadian province of Manitoba. Across southwest Missouri, Interstate 44 connects St. Louis to Okla homa and Texas, then the American Southwest. A final piece, Interstate 49, ties Kansas City’s southern reaches to Arkansas and Louisiana on its way to the Gulf of Mexico. In almost all cases, those routes pro vide four-lane, divided-highway connec tions that reduce travel times and fuel consumption and improve safety for truckers and those in passenger vehicles alike. In addition to the makeover of Kan sas City Southern, Missouri continues to leverage the intercontinental rail road system, with all of the other Class I railroads pushing more rail tonnage through Kansas City than any other city on the continent. Across the state, St. Louis stands as the nation’s third-largest rail hub (Chicago is the first in terms of traffic). Again, the five major Class I lines converge there, and it’s a major jumping-off point for cargo to the east ern U.S. The shine has yet to wear off on the new Kansas City International Airport, which combines with Lambert Inter national in St. Louis to give the state ample assets for moving freight by air; KCI shipped 128,000 tons of cargo last year, up more than 25 percent from its pre- pandemic high. Lambert has also soared past pre-pandemic freight levels, up 23.9 percent last year to more than 98,000 tons. In addition to the international airports, Springfield National Airport offers additional options for regional shipments. That brings us to the aquatic assets. The longest river in the U.S., Missouri, al lows for barge traffic to leave Kansas City en route to St. Louis and the Mississippi and, 1,000 miles downriver, to the Gulf of Mexico. Each city has its own port au thority, as well, to help oversee the move ment of such vital products as coal, fertil izer, grain, salt, processed steel products, petroleum coke, and more.

A CROSS-CONTINENT POWERHOUSE | The merger of Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern Railway last year put Missouri at the nexus of North America's most extensive intracontinental rail system.

THE KC AND MISSOURI ADVANTAGE | Centrality allows commerce to flow throughout much of North America, and a robust network of highways, rail systems and waterways support that movement.

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DestinationMissouri.com

Missouri's Business Media

2023