Table 3-2: Number of U.S. Vehicles, Vessels, and other Conveyances
A vast number of vehicles and vessels are used to move goods over the transportation network. The number of commercial trucks has climbed steadily over the past twenty years, but their share of the total highway vehicle fleet remained constant. The total number of commercial trucks grew by nearly 40 percent between 1980 and 2002. The character of the fleet has changed, however, as the number of combination trucks grew twice as fast as the number of single-unit trucks over this period, 60 percent versus 30 percent. The number of rail freight cars has declined since 1980 as newer cars typically have greater capacity than older ones.
 |
1980 | 1990 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highway | 161,490,159 | 193,057,376 | 225,821,241 | 235,331,381 | 234,624,135 |
| Truck, single-unit 2-axle 6-tire or more | 4,373,784 | 4,486,981 | 5,926,030 | 5,703,500 | 5,650,619 |
| Truck, combination | 1,416,869 | 1,708,895 | 2,096,619 | 2,154,174 | 2,276,661 |
| Truck, total | 5,790,653 | 6,195,876 | 8,022,649 | 7,857,674 | 7,927,280 |
| Trucks as percent of all highway vehicles | 3.6 | 3.2 | 3.6 | 3.3 | 3.4 |
| Rail | |
|
|
|
|
| Class I, locomotive | 28,094 | 18,835 | 20,028 | 19,745 | 20,506 |
| Class I, freight cars1 | 1,168,114 | 658,902 | 560,154 | 499,860 | 477,751 |
| Nonclass I freight cars1 | 102,161 | 103,527 | 132,448 | 125,470 | 130,590 |
| Car companies and shippers freight cars1 | 440,552 | 449,832 | 688,194 | 688,806 | 691,329 |
| Water | 38,788 | 39,445 | 41,354 | 41,588 | 41,002 |
| Nonself-propelled vessels2 | 31,662 | 31,209 | 33,152 | 33,042 | 32,381 |
| Self-propelled vessels3 | 7,126 | 8,236 | 8,202 | 8,546 | 8,621 |
| Oceangoing steam and motor ships4 | 864 | 636 | 454 | 443 | 426 |
| US Flag fleet as percent of world fleet4 | 3.5 | 2.7 | 1.6 | 1.6 | 1.5 |
1Beginning with 2001 data, Canadian-owned U.S. railroads are excluded. This accounts for about 47,000 cars in 2000.
2Nonself-propelled vessels include dry-cargo barges, tank barges, and railroad-car floats.
3Self-propelled vessels include dry cargo, passenger, off-shore support, tankers, and towboats.
41,000 gross tons and over.
Sources: Highway: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Highway Statistics (Washington, DC: Annual issues).
Rail: Association of American Railroads, Railroad Facts 2003 (Washington, DC: 2003).
Water: Nonself-propelled vessels and self-propelled vessels: U.S. Army, Corps of Engineers, Waterborne Transportation Lines of the United States, Volume 1, National Summaries (New Orleans, LA : Annual issues). Oceangoing steam motor ships: U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration, Merchant Fleets of the World (Washington, DC: Annual issues).
