WASHINGTON — The Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) is releasing a new case study highlighting how federal transportation investments along Interstate 90, America’s longest transcontinental highway, are helping strengthen the U.S. agricultural supply chain and support rural communities nationwide.
“America’s farmers, ranchers and manufacturers depend on reliable transportation networks to move goods and reach domestic and global markets,” TCC said. “These two projects along I-90 show how sustained federal investment delivers more dependable freight and stronger rural economies. Their progress underscores the value of long-term federal funding, and why Congress must act on the next surface transportation reauthorization by September 30 to keep America’s rural communities connected, competitive, and economically strong.”
The release comes as Congress negotiates the next surface transportation reauthorization. TCC is urging lawmakers to enact a new long-term bill before the September 30 deadline to provide the certainty states and local communities need to continue delivering critical infrastructure projects.
America’s Agriculture Economy
“America’s agricultural economy depends on transportation networks that connect rural producers to processing facilities, distribution centers, ports and markets,” TCC said. “Interstate 90 plays a central role in that system, linking agricultural regions and freight hubs across 13 states. The case study examines two projects in South Dakota and in New York.”
South Dakota: Improving Safety and Reliability for Rural Freight Movement
“South Dakota is home to 28,200 farm operations across more than 42.2 million acres and shipped $4.6 billion in agricultural exports abroad in 2024,” TCC said. “The state’s Department of Transportation calls I-90 its ‘main east-west freight corridor,’ carrying commodity movements equivalent to more than 1 million 18-wheel truck trips a year. In western South Dakota, federal funding is replacing a hazardous at-grade railroad crossing near I-90’s Exit 46 with a new bridge, giving farmers, freight haulers and emergency responders a safer and more reliable route.”
New York: Preserving a Critical Freight Connection
“In New York, federal funding is restoring the Castleton-on-Hudson Bridge, a key east-west link south of Albany,” TCC said. “Built in 1958, the one-mile bridge stands 135 feet over the Hudson River and carries about 6.2 million vehicles a year—roughly 17,000 a day—connecting Upstate farms, food processors and manufacturers to markets across the Northeast. The New York State Thruway Authority received $21 million in federal funding for deck replacement, steel repairs, and safety improvements—work expected to extend the bridge’s service life by about 50 years.”
This case study is part of a TCC series highlighting projects and communities nationwide that depend on federal transportation funding to improve mobility, strengthen supply chains and create economic opportunity.
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe. She is currently based in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.
