The Department of Transportation is moving through the final stages of establishing the National Multimodal Freight Network (NMFN), a federally designated system of highways, railroad lines, maritime routes, airports, and ports that together form the critical infrastructure backbone of U.S. commercial goods movement.
Legislative & Operational Timeline
- April 2024: DOT published a request for information (RFI) to identify critical freight facilities.
- January 2025: Draft designation published based on RFI responses.
- February 2025: Deadline for public comment on the draft network.
- December 2025: Multimodal Freight Office reviews feedback to prepare for formal state-level input.
- 2026 (Expected): Final release of the National Freight Strategic Plan and official NMFN designation.
The Scale of U.S. Freight Infrastructure
The network spans the full range of infrastructure required to keep the American supply chain operational. As of 2023, the capital assets of this system were valued at $11.1 trillion.
| Mode | Scale |
|---|---|
| Highways & Roads | 4 Million Miles |
| Rail Lines | 140,000 Miles |
| Waterways | 25,000 Miles |
| Pipelines | 2.8 Million Miles |
| Public Airports | 5,000+ Facilities |
The Intermodal Coordination Challenge
While trucking remains the dominant force in logistics, accounting for 64.6% of volume and 72.6% of value, the complexity of long-haul shipping necessitates a multimodal approach:
“Nearly one-third of all shipments measured by ton-miles travel more than 2,000 miles and require multiple modes to reach their destination.”
The NMFN designation is designed to address this specific coordination challenge by providing a baseline framework for assessing system performance and directing federal investment every five years.
