Interstate and Highway Transportation

Located where Interstate 80 meets Interstate 29, Greater Omaha is at the crossroads for regional and national commerce. This makes it possible to reach the majority of U.S. destinations within two to three days by truck. Expansion Management recently designated Omaha as a "Top Five Star Logistics Metro" for being in the top 5% of all metro areas nationwide for the Logistics Quotient. Factors considered for the quotient include overall transportation and distribution industry climate, workforce/labor costs/availability/skill levels, road/highway basic infrastructure and spending, road density/congestion/truck safety, road conditions, taxes and fees, railroad access, air service and interstate highway access.

Greater Omaha is also home to 50 interstate and 40 intrastate motor freight carriers providing direct transcontinental access to national markets. This includes the nation’s premier transportation and logistics company, Werner Enterprises. An extensive availability of irregular route, contract and special commodity carriers completes the full array of over-the-road truck transportation available to metro area businesses.

The Omaha Foreign Trade Zone No. 19, the only active general purpose FTZ in the state of Nebraska, assists importers by allowing duty on imported goods to be reduced, deferred or even eliminated. Located on more than 17 acres of land with 250,000 square feet of warehouse space in the Riverfront Industrial Park, Omaha’s general purpose zone can benefit companies involved in international trade. As a designated port of entry, Omaha has a Customs Director just minutes away from the FTZ, allowing goods be imported and cleared quickly. Omaha’s central location as a transportation hub allows companies to move their goods around the country and the world quickly and efficiently.

Rail Transportation

Home to the nation’s first transcontinental railroad, Greater Omaha remains a leading rail center to such carriers as Union Pacific Railroad, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway and Canadian National. The nation’s largest railroad company, Union Pacific Corporation, is headquartered in Omaha where our central location promotes efficient rail service and intermodal freight transportation to destinations across the U.S. and throughout North America.

Water Transportation

Greater Omaha is served by several barge lines via the Missouri River. Six mainstream dams on the upper reaches of the Missouri River ensure adequate water for navigational purposes. River transportation is available March through November.

The inland waterway system is available to Greater Omaha firms as a low cost means of reaching both national and international markets. Commodities capable of movement in large volume, such as grain products, fertilizers, molasses, salt, cement, prepared animal foods, chemicals, iron, steel and newsprint are commonly shipped via water.

Commuter Transportation

Greater Omaha’s transportation infrastructure is equally efficient at getting people where they need to be. Recent investments in the region’s interstate system ease morning and evening commutes – reducing the time employees put in behind the wheel. In fact, Greater Omaha has an average one-way commute time of 19.5 minutes.

In addition, the area’s Metro Area Transit (MAT) provides efficient and affordable bus service throughout Greater Omaha. MAT buses travel over six million miles annually and provide transportation for over 4.9 million customers.

A number of companies provide the service as a courtesy to their employees. Five transit information centers and over 4,000 bustops are conveniently located throughout Greater Omaha.