North Dakota Connects to the Nation Via Freight Rail
The bounty harvested from North Dakota farms and oil fields reaches markets nationwide and around the globe thanks to freight rail’s seamless connections. Railroads make it possible for North Dakota to help feed the nation while also enabling domestic energy independence.
North Dakota's seven freight railroads operate over 3,223 miles of track and employ 1,458 in the Peace Garden State.* It would have taken approximately 6.8 million additional trucks to handle the 122.1 million tons of freight that started, ended, or moved through North Dakota in 2021. Moving freight by rail prevented 7.57 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions, the equivalent of taking 1.49 million cars off the road or planting 114.8 million trees. Farm products and crude oil make up the majority of freight rail shipments beginning in North Dakota. Nonmetallic minerals and coal are the largest rail imports to the state.
*2021 data
