Infrastructure

Transportation

Highways
Air Service
Motor Freight
Rail Service
Bus Service
Waterways

Highways

Rutherford County is within a day’s drive of 75 percent of the American market on one of the nation’s best highway systems.

The county is bisected with main thoroughfare Interstate 24, linking Nashville and Chattanooga. Interstate 40 intersects with Interstate 24 and Interstate 65, offering easy access to all points north, west and east, just 15 miles north of Rutherford County.

The four-lane State Route 840 links with Interstate 24, Interstate 65 and Interstate 40 in the east with a connection now being built to Interstate 40 to the west.

Rutherford County’s federal highways include Highway 41, 70, 231, 41A, 31A and 431. State routes include Highway 96, 99, 266, 268, 269, 102 and 840.

Air Service

The Nashville International Airport (BNA) provides commercial air service to the metropolitan area and all of Middle Tennessee through all major commercial carriers. The airport is served by:

With more than 400 arrivals and departures daily, the Nashville International Airport serves 96 major markets throughout the country. The airport is nearly adjacent to Rutherford County, just eight miles from La Vergne.

The Smyrna/Rutherford County Airport Authority, serving both public and private clients, has one 5,500-foot runway and one 8,000-foot runway. With more than 1,700 acres, the airport is the third largest airport in Tennessee. It is in the midst of a major international expansion to carry international freight and passengers.

Motor Freight

The region, with its convenient central location, is one of the nation’s leading warehouse and distribution centers. More than 140 carriers and 150 terminals serve the region, offering trucks with refrigeration, tank and heavy hauling, hazardous waste and flatbed capabilities. Sixteen freight carriers serve Rutherford County directly, with 16 terminals throughout Smyrna, La Vergne and Murfreesboro.

Tennessee trucking laws permit trucks 65 feet long to carry 80,000 pounds on the state’s highways. These laws are in conformity with most states.

Freight carriers that serve the area:

Rail Service

CSX Transportation, the nation’s largest transportation and natural resources company provide major rail service in Rutherford County. The nearest piggyback and container services are located just a few miles away in Nashville.

The CSX rail system covers a major portion of the eastern United States and links 20 states.

Bus Service

Starting in 2007, Murfreesboro’s new transit system, “Rover,” will run a half dozen buses within city limits. For more information, contact Murfreesboro Public Transportation (615) 494-1233.

Bus transportation is also provided by Greyhound/Trailways.

The Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) is a nine-county public agency created by state statute in 1988 to plan and develop a regional transit system. The counties include Cheatham, Davidson, Dickson, Maury, Robertson, Rutherford, Sumner, Williamson and Wilson. RTA provides the “Relax and Ride” service, a daily commuter bus service shuttling riders from Murfreesboro to Nashville.

Waterways

The nearest port facility, with a nine-foot channel, is the Port of Nashville at the Cumberland River. The river links the region to intermediate points on the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway and on to the Gulf of Mexico. Some 30 commercial operators serving Nashville use the river.