Driving Gallup Forward: The Route to Trade & Talent

By Evan Williams, CEcD, Executive Director, Northwest New Mexico Council of Governments

As Economic Development Week shines a national spotlight on the communities shaping tomorrow’s economy, Gallup, New Mexico stands at a pivotal moment—rooted in history, strategically positioned in the present, and driving forward into a globally connected future. The theme “Driving Gallup Forward: The Route to Trade & Talent” reflects not only where Gallup has been, but where it is headed.

For nearly a century, Gallup has served as a gateway community on historic Route 66. Known worldwide as the “Mother Road,” Route 66 connected America’s coasts, cultures, and commerce—placing Gallup squarely on the map as a crossroads of trade, tourism, and tradition. As the Route 66 Centennial is celebrated across New Mexico and internationally, Gallup’s legacy as a place of movement and exchange is being reintroduced to global audiences through infrastructure investment, placemaking, and business development initiatives.

But Gallup’s story is not just about nostalgia. It is about transformation.

Today, Gallup occupies a strategic position in the modern logistics economy, leveraging the same geographic advantages that once defined Route 66. Interstate 40—still one of the nation’s most critical eastwest freight corridors—runs through the heart of the city, carrying goods from the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to markets across the Southwest and Midwest. Parallel to I40 is the BNSF Southern Transcon rail line, one of North America’s busiest freight rail corridors, connecting the West Coast to Chicago and beyond.

These assets converge at the Gallup Energy Logistics Park (GELP), a BNSFcertified & State -certified, railserved industrial site offering direct intermodal access for manufacturing, warehousing, and transloading operations. With shovelready sites, heavyhaul road access, and proximity to regional energy and supply markets, Gallup is increasingly positioned as an inland logistics and trade hub within the global marketplace.

As global supply chains adapt to reshoring, workforce constraints, and the demand for resilient inland ports, Gallup’s location within the “11hour rule” trucking radius from West Coast ports provides a competitive advantage for timesensitive distribution and valueadded manufacturing. In this way, Gallup continues its historic role—not just as a place goods pass through, but as a place where value is created.

Equally important as infrastructure is talent.

Gallup’s workforce is one of its greatest strengths: resilient, adaptable, and deeply rooted in the region. Serving as a hub for Northwest New Mexico and the Four Corners, Gallup draws talent from surrounding rural and Tribal communities and is home to a growing ecosystem of education, healthcare, clean energy, construction, logistics, and creative industries. Economic development efforts increasingly focus on aligning workforce training with emerging sectors—ensuring that local residents are prepared for careers connected to trade, transportation, and technology.

The Route 66 Centennial reinforces this futurefocused vision. Investments in wayfinding, public art, downtown revitalization, and MainStreet businesses are drawing visitors, entrepreneurs, and remote professionals—helping Gallup compete not only for freight and capital, but for people. Heritage tourism, cultural industries, and logistics now work in tandem to support a diversified economy that honors the past while building opportunity for the next generation.

Economic development is ultimately about people—connecting them to opportunity, place, and purpose. For Gallup, the road forward is clear. From Route 66 to Interstate 40, from rail lines to modern TradePort planning, Gallup remains a true crossroads—driving trade, cultivating talent, and proving that historic communities can lead in a global economy.

This is Gallup’s route forward. And it’s one worth celebrating.
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About the Author

Evan Williams has been the Executive Director of the Northwest New Mexico Council of Governments (NWNMCOG) for five years and is a certified Economic Developer who has been serving the region for nearly 25 years. He and his team are responsible for developing, implementing, and managing the Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) for the region.

About Northwest New Mexico Council of Governments

The NWNMCOG) is a 53-year-old regional development organization (RDO) recognized and empowered by the State of New Mexico and the US Economic Development Administration. We serve the entire three-county region of Cibola, McKinley, and San Juan counties and the communities therein to improve community and economy for the region and its people. The NWNMCOG is an association of nine local governments governed by a Board of Directors unified by the belief that we are stronger together and only united can we advance on regional opportunities and tackle regional challenges, from sustainable water supply to behavior health, to strategic infrastructure, and to regional economic development.

For more information about NWNMCOG, visit www.nwnmcog.org.