CHICAGO, Illinois
Population: 2,722,389
Unemployment: 6.1 percent
Key Transportation Infrastructure: O’Hare International Airport
Six of the seven Class I railroads meet there, helping make Chicago the largest hub in the railroad industry. They work in concert with the Port of Chicago to make it the third largest intermodal port in the world. After relinquishing the title of world’s overall busiest airport for eight years to Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson, Chicago’s O’Hare once again regained the title and is sixth in the U.S. in total amount of cargo moved.