To be successful, a two-state, two-country region needs an integrated transportation infrastructure to move people, materials and goods. The Rio Grande Region has strong links in every facet of the transit chain.
Interstate 10, a major east-west highway that runs from Florida to California, runs through the heart of the region and is a vital connector that crosses north-south route I-25 in Las Cruces, N.M. The daylight speed limit on I-10 is 80 mph. from El Paso County to Kerr County in Texas, the highest posted speed limit in the nation. Major U.S. Highways 54, 62, 85 and 180 and State Highways 20 and 178 also serve the region.
The Rio Grande Region includes several entry points on the U.S.-Mexico border served by international Class I rail carriers Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Union Pacific. BNSF and Union Pacific operate the two largest freight railway networks in North America, and have each served the region for more than 50 years. 
The area is also home to a number of charter and general aviation airports. At Dona Ana County Airport in Santa Teresa, N.M., the master plan calls for the airport's expansion to accommodate large passenger and cargo jets. Las Cruces International Airport, a general aviation facility eight miles from downtown Las Cruces, N.M., has three runways and plenty of room to grow. Dona Ana County Airport and Las Cruces International are part of a designated Foreign Trade Zone. 
El Paso International Airport, which offers 128 commercial passenger flights daily and nonstop service to 15 cities, is the region's largest commercial air facility and plays a vital role in the regional transportation system. The airport handled more than 3.3 million passengers and 67.8 million tons of cargo in 2008.

"It is vital not only for aviation and airline passenger travel, but also for industrial, commercial and cargo activity," says Monica Lombrana, director of aviation at El Paso International Airport 
The airport is also home to Foreign Trade Zone 68, which spans more than 2,500 acres and features 17 different warehouse sites. It is the second-highest volume general purpose Foreign Trade Zone in the United States, Lombrana says. 
She adds that the airport offers easy access to I-10 and U.S. Highway 54, and also features a science and technology park. El Paso International is also within close proximity to multiple maquiladora factories, which import materials for manufacturing into Mexico on a duty-free and tariff-free basis, and then re-export the assembled products back to the United States.

In the last three years, El Paso International has made $60 million in upgrades that include two 144,000-square-foot air cargo buildings, 34 acres of aircraft parking and a new passenger terminal.