Site Selector Toolkit
A concise guide to the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway and Marine Highway M-65.
Corridor overview.
The Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway anchors Marine Highway M-65, a corridor of over 1,300 miles connecting five river systems across four states, with direct access to the Port of Mobile.
1,364
Statute miles on M-65
Paducah and Knoxville to the Port of Mobile, and the Black Warrior to Birmingham.
234
Miles of the Tenn-Tom
The ten-lock heart of M-65, linking the Tennessee River to the Mobile River system.
116
Counties in four states
Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee.
- Designated
- 2010, U.S. Marine Highway Program (MARAD)
- Connects
- M-10 at Mobile · M-55 at Cairo, Illinois
- Landside
- Interstate 65 corridor
- To the Gulf
- 800 miles closer for interior shippers
Route and length: U.S. Maritime Administration, M-65 route sheet (December 2025).
Corridor maps.
Rail, interstates, major airports, ports, and locks across the four M-65 states. The same five maps are in the PDF.
Why water freight.
One 8-barge tow carries what about 560 trucks carry.
More than four times more efficient than highway transport.
30–50%
Lower transportation costs vs. trucking
89%
Fewer CO₂ emissions per ton-mile
1:1,145
Barge-to-truck injury ratio
Source: National Waterways Foundation / Texas A&M Transportation Institute, A Modal Comparison of Domestic Freight Transportation Effects on the General Public: 2001–2019 (January 2022).
Site selection advantages.
Multimodal access
Waterway-connected sites with access to rail, highways, and the Gulf.
See sites, rail, and highwaysEconomic development connections
TTWDA connects site selectors with local partners for site-specific information.
Economic Development PartnersStart a conversation.
TTWDA works the full length of the corridor and makes the local introductions.
TTWDA
- ttw@tenntom.org
- Phone
- 662.328.3286
Alabama
Alabama Department of Commerce
(opens in a new window)Kentucky
Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development
(opens in a new window)Mississippi
Mississippi Development Authority
(opens in a new window)Tennessee
Tennessee Department of Economic & Community Development
(opens in a new window)Take the toolkit with you.
Nine pages: the route, five corridor maps, the case for water freight, site selection advantages, and who to call. The print-friendly version uses white pages to save ink. No sign-up required.