Location and Infrastructure

Transportation in Lynchburg Region

Delta Star CEO Jason Greene discusses the ease of moving product in the Lynchburg Region.

The Lynchburg Region offers easy access to customers and supply chain with its central location. Virginia’s modern infrastructure provides companies the opportunity to move product in and out quickly.

Location

Located in the heart of the eastern seaboard, the Lynchburg Region provides excellent access to the nation’s strategic markets. Major metropolitan areas from New York to Atlanta are accessible within the following drive times:

Port of Virginia – 3 hours, 30 minutes
Richmond – 2 hours, 15 minutes
Washington, D.C. – 3 hours, 40 minutes
Philadelphia – 5 hours, 45 minutes
Atlanta – 7 hours
New York City – 7 hours

Infrastructure

Road Transportation

Abundant road infrastructure connects Lynchburg Region’s businesses with other regional assets and nearby metropolitan areas and transit hubs, including Roanoke, Richmond, and the Port of Virginia. Highways and interstate access is provided through:

U.S. Highway 29 (North-South)
U.S. Highway 460 (East-West)
Interstate 81 (North-South) 55 miles
Interstate 64 (East-West) 65 miles

Several large distribution centers call the Lynchburg Region home. Bausch + Lomb, J. Crew, and Abbott Nutrition all service their customers from the Lynchburg Region via truck transit. The region’s average commute time is 24 minutes.

Air Transportation

The Lynchburg Regional Airport (LYH)/Preston Glenn Field offers direct commercial air service to the international air hub at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport through American Airlines. In October 2020, the airport announced increased flights and larger jet service with four roundtrip flights daily from 5 am – midnight. The flight from LYH to CLT takes approximately 45 minutes. General aviation service is available at both Lynchburg Regional Airport and Falwell Airport.

Freight & Passenger Rail Service

CSX Transportation and the Norfolk Southern Railway Company provide freight rail service to businesses in the Lynchburg Region. Amtrak passenger rail service provides daily round-trip commuter service to Washington, D.C. and the Crescent Line services cities northbound to New York and southbound to New Orleans.

Utilities

Water

While Lynchburg’s Mid-Atlantic location and versatile workforce are certainly attractive to big businesses, the abundance of water in the region is a draw with excess of more than 25 million gallons per day. While the James River provides the most visible source of water in the region, most of the water comes from the Pedlar Reservoir in Amherst County. Each municipality coordinates its own water service and rates. The Regional Waste Water Treatment Plant treats an average of 13 million gallons a day with a peak of 36 – 40 million gallons. It serves the City of Lynchburg, as well as, the counties of Amherst, Bedford and Campbell. This state-of-the-art wastewater treatment facility represents long-term commitment and cooperation by the citizens of the region to protect the state’s natural resources.

Electric

In choosing a location for your business, regardless of size or industry, electric considerations are of the utmost importance. The Lynchburg Region offers competitive, stable and reliable electric energy provided by AEP, Central Virginia Electric Cooperative, Dominion Virginia Power, and Southside Electric Cooperative. Our electric providers can offer rates to industrial customers as low as .047₵ kilowatt per hour. These low electric rates, coupled with our knowledgeable technical workforce, low natural disaster occurrence, and large water supply, are making the Lynchburg Region a prime area for new and expanding business.

Telecommunications

Mid-Atlantic Broadband, Verizon, Cox Communications, Shentel, Lumos Networks, and Comcast provide telecommunications services. The region continues to focus on broadband improvements, specially in the rural areas, to better serve businesses and individuals.

Natural Gas

Columbia Gas of Virginia is headquartered in Chester and provides natural gas service to residential, commercial and industrial customers in 91 communities across 65 percent of Virginia. They are one of the six energy delivery companies of NiSource Inc., who together provide essential natural gas and electric service to nearly 4 million customers.

Port of Virginia

The Lynchburg Region is strategically located within a short drive of the Port of Virginia. The Port of Virginia moves cargo through world-class facilities and transports to and from markets around the globe, carrying the goods and supplies that manufacturers, corporations, and individual consumers use in their everyday lives.

Between 2015 and 2025, the port will have invested $1.5 billion in its infrastructure, creating a network of six terminals that can handle any type of cargo. By 2024, the Port of Virginia will be the deepest port on the U.S. East Coast with 55’ channels and two-way traffic for the largest vessels calling our coast.