Highways:

Four inter-regional highways pass through or are easily accessible from the Bedford area:

• US 460 connecting with I-81 near Roanoke
• US 29 in Lynchburg
• US 501 linking the Shenandoah Valley with central North Carolina
• US 221 connecting Lynchburg & Bedford
• US 122 connecting Smith Mountain Lake and Bedford

Railroads:

• The east-west line of Norfolk Southern railroad connects the agricultural Midwest, the industrial Great Lakes and the Allegheny coalfields with the Atlantic Coast.
• AMTRAK passenger service is available in Lynchburg and Roanoke. Bus service from Roanoke to Lynchburg with a stop at the Bedford Welcome Center is available daily.

Airports:

• The Lynchburg and Roanoke Regional Airports provide air service for Bedford area residents and businesses.
• Commercial air service is provided by Allegiant, American Airlines, Delta, and United Airlines, with many daily departures and arrivals. Limousine service and rental cars are available at both airports.
• Freedom Aviation located on the grounds of the Lynchburg Regional Airport also operates a full-service Fixed Base Operator (FBO) facility, offering hangar rental in its pristine heated hangars, Jet A & 100LL aircraft fueling at competitive pricing, and other services.

Ports:

The Virginia Port Authority (VPA) is the Commonwealth’s leading agency for international transportation and maritime commerce and manages Virginia’s five general cargo terminals: Norfolk International Terminals, APM Terminals Virginia in Portsmouth, the Newport News Marine Terminal, the Virginia Inland Port in Front Royal and the Port of Richmond. The Port of Virginia is the only port on the U.S. East Coast that can handle the world’s largest container ship. Also, CSX and Norfolk Southern are upgrading their rail network to have capabilities to send double-stack trains from east coast ports such as Virginia to the Midwest.

The Port of Virginia offers special incentives to companies who locate to Virginia including:

• Barge and Rail Usage Tax Credit (Code of Virginia Section 58.1-439.12:09): Tax credit of $25 per TEU or 16 tons of non-containerized cargo for the usage of barge/rail to move cargo.
• International Trade Facility Tax Credit (Code of Virginia Section 58.1-429.12:06): Income tax credit equal to $3,500 for every employee hired by Virginia shippers that results from increased cargo of 10% moving through a Virginia Port Authority- operated cargo facility, OR 2% of any capital investment made by a Virginia shipper to facilitate increased cargo moving through the Port of Virginia. (Amount available double in the Tobacco Region.)
• Port Volume Increase Tax Credit (Code of Virginia Section 58.1-439.12.10): Tax credit of $50 per TEU to Virginia taxpayers engaged in manufacturing goods or the distribution of manufactured goods via The Port of Virginia and have increased their port volume by 5% in a single year over their base year port cargo volume.
• Port Economic and Infrastructure Development Zone: Grant for qualifying port users new to or expanding in the zone:
  • $1,000 per job for 25 new jobs
  • $1,500 per job for 50 new jobs
  • $2,000 per job for 75 new jobs
  • $3,000 per job for 100 new jobs

Motor Carriers:

Major trucking firms provide excellent daily carrier service to the Bedford area.