2016 Freight Quick Facts Report

1. Existing Infrastructure and How it is Used

Multimodal Perspective – Mode Share

The freight transportation system relies on a variety of modes to support domestic and international supply chains. As shown in Table 1, trucks carry the majority of freight in the continental United States, both by tonnage and value. Pipelines carry the second largest tonnage, although this mode involves only specific liquid and gaseous commodities. The commodities moved by truck and air tend to have a higher value per ton, giving these modes a higher share in terms of value. In interpreting this table, it is important to keep in mind that most goods rely on multiple freight modes throughout the supply chain.

Table 1. Mode share by tonnage and value, 2015.
Domestic Mode	Millions of Tons				Billions of 2015 USD
Domestic Mode	Domestic Only	Export	Import	Total	Domestic Only	Export	Import	Total
Air (include truck-air)	0%	0%	0%	0%	1%	17%	14%	4%
Multiple modes & mail	2%	5%	3%	2%	12%	6%	6%	11%
Other modes and unknown	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	1%	2%	0%
Pipeline	19%	13%	16%	18%	9%	4%	4%	8%
Rail	9%	15%	9%	9%	3%	5%	5%	3%
Truck	66%	52%	35%	64%	73%	57%	53%	69%
Water	4%	15%	11%	5%	3%	10%	9%	4%
No Domestic Mode	0%	0%	25%	2%	0%	0%	7%	1%
Total	16,045	912	1,099	18,056	15,558	1,745	2,567	19,871

Table 1 also provides a breakdown of freight flows by whether they are part of an international supply chain (exports or imports) or have domestic origins and destinations. Overall, exports represent 8.8 percent of value shipped and imports represent 12.9 percent. In terms of tonnage, these proportions are 5.0 percent and 6.1 percent, respectively.

Measuring commodity flows in terms of tonnage is useful for assessing infrastructure requirements (how much needs to be moved), while measuring the economic value of the flows is more useful in highlighting economic impacts and interdependencies. However, measuring the value of flows has the drawback that many factors can lead to year-over-year changes, including changes in the prices of the underlying commodities. Therefore, where possible, this document reports both tonnage and value.

Multimodal Perspective – Commodity Mode Shares

The patterns of production and consumption in an economy are the primary drivers of freight mode share. Table 2 shows the mode shares of the top 15 commodities in terms of tonnage, which account for 80.5 percent of all tons shipped in 2015. The commodity groups reported in this document follow the two-digit Standard Classification of Transported Goods (SCTG) definitions. Pipelines are the primary shipping medium for natural gas, gasoline, fuel oils, and crude petroleum. Rail is used primarily for coal, cereal grains, basic chemicals, and other bulk products. Trucks are involved in the supply chains of almost all commodities, particularly for consumer goods that need to be delivered to retail locations.

Table 2. Commodity share of tons by mode, 2015.
Rank	Top Commodities by Tonnage	Mode (percent)						Millions of Tons
Rank	Top Commodities by Tonnage	Air	Pipeline	Rail	Truck	Water	Other	Millions of Tons
1	Coal-n.e.c.	0	80	2	15	2	0	2,647.0
2	Gravel	0	0	4	90	3	2	1,820.3
3	Gasoline	0	31	2	59	7	1	1,227.2
4	Cereal grains	0	0	18	77	4	2	1,099.0
5	Nonmetal mineral products	0	0	4	94	1	2	1,072.6
6	Fuel oils	0	29	2	51	17	1	1,054.4
7	Coal	0	0	61	23	8	8	1,001.1
8	Crude petroleum	0	50	r	3	13	30	903.4
9	Other foodstuffs	0	0	7	89	1	3	704.1
10	Waste/scrap	0	0	5	92	2	2	652.9
11	Natural sands	0	0	4	94	1	1	562.0
12	Other agricultural products	0	0	5	92	2	2	652.9
13	Wood products	0	0	6	90	0	3	433.2
14	Basic chemicals	0	8	27	50	13	1	408.6
15	Mixed freight	0	0	0	97	0	2	386.1
	Other	0	0	10	82	3	4	3,529.6
Total		0	18	9	64	5	4	18,055.9

n.e.c.=not elsewhere classified
Source: BTS and FHWA Freight Analysis Framework 4.2 (https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/freight_analysis/faf/index.htm).
Note: FAF made specific revisions to its modal and commodity definitions from 2007 (version 3) to 2015 (version 4); however, these changes are unlikely to alter significantly the tendency of the historical results shown in this table. Value was adjusted for inflation.
Other includes: multiple modes & mail, no domestic mode, and other, and unknown.

Table 3 shows the top 15 commodities moved by value and the freight modes used. These top 15 commodities account for 73 percent of all value shipped. Trucks overwhelmingly transport high-value commodities such as electronics, mixed freight shipments, vehicles, and machinery. Air shows up prominently in this table, especially for higher-value, time-sensitive commodities such as electronics, machinery, pharmaceuticals, and precision instruments.

Table 3. Commodity share of value by mode, 2015.
Rank	Top Commodities by Value	Mode (percent)						Billions of Dollars (2015)
Rank	Top Commodities by Value	Air	Pipeline	Rail	Truck	Water	Other	Billions of Dollars (2015)
1	Electronics	15	0	0	62	2	21	1,726.9
2	Motorized vehicles	1	0	7	77	2	13	1,513.9
3	Mixed Freight	1	0	0	90	2	7	1,505.4
4	Machinery	7	0	1	77	3	12	1,185.4
5	Gasoline	0	31	2	59	7	1	1,165.3
6	Coal-n.e.c.	0	57	3	35	4	1	967.8
7	Pharmaceuticals	8	0	0	53	1	38	932.2
8	Fuel Oils	0	27	1	56	15	1	880.1
9	Misc. mfg. prods	7	0	0	65	1	26	816.3
10	Other foodstuffs	0	0	5	91	1	3	733.2
11	Plastics/rubber	1	0	12	76	2	9	732.8
12	Textiles/leather	2	0	0	73	3	22	673.4
13	Crude petroleum	0	49	4	3	14	31	610.5
14	Base metals	1	0	8	85	2	5	560.8
15	Precision instruments	20	0	0	44	2	35	492.7
	Other	3	1	6	79	3	8	5,373.9
Total		4	8	3	69	4	12	19,870.7

n.e.c.=not elsewhere classified
Source: BTS and FHWA Freight Analysis Framework 4.2 (https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/freight_analysis/faf/index.htm).
Note: Other includes: multiple modes & mail, no domestic mode, and other and unknown.

Multimodal Perspective – Modal Trends

Freight volumes increased rapidly throughout most of the 1990s and 2000s as shown in Table 4. Even though the economic recession of 2008 temporarily decreased freight ton-miles, after 2010 growth has rebounded strongly to pre-recession averages. Looking into the future, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) forecasts total ton-miles to grow at 1 percent per year through 2040. Projections of steady economic growth (the economy doubling in size by 2045) and population growth (an additional 68 million people by 2045) will drive this increase in freight transportation demand.

The USDOT expects different freight modes to grow at different rates. Trucks have been rapidly gaining mode share since 1990 and will continue to do so out to 2040. Rail has also been steadily gaining mode share over the last two decades, although the USDOT expects these advances to slow down in the medium term and reverse in the long term, as several key bulk commodities play a smaller role in the economy (refer to page 6).

Table 4. Historical and forecasted mode share of ton-miles, 1990 to 2040.
Domestic Mode	Ton-Miles Mode Share					Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
	1990	2000	2010	2015	2040	Historical		Forecast
	1990	2000	2010	2015	2040	1990 to 2000	2000 to 2010	2010 to 2015	2015 to 2040
Truck	36.4%	42.3%	44.0%	46.5%	54.4%	3.2	1.0	3.0	1.6
Railroad	22.9%	28.1%	29.4%	28.7%	25.9%	3.8	1.1	1.4	0.6
Pipeline	22.0%	17.3%	17.0%	16.7%	12.1%	-0.8	0.5	1.5	-0.3
Domestic Water Transportation	17.9%	11.5%	8.8%	7.4%	6.8%	-2.8%	-2.0%	-1.8%	0.6%
Air	0.8%	0.7%	0.8%	0.7%	0.7%	1.1	1.0	0.9	0.8
Total Ton-Miles (trillions)	4.77	5.62	5.98	6.56	8.39	1.6	0.6	1.9	1.0

Source: Draft National Freight Strategic Plan (https://www.transportation.gov/sites/dot.gov/files/docs/DRAFT_NFSP_for_Public_Comment_508_10 15 15 v1.pdf), BTS Special Tabulation, Figure 4.

Table 5 shows that, from 2007 to 2015, substantial decreases in tons shipped for almost all modes occurred because of the economic recession. Pipelines, which saw almost double-digit growth from the boom in natural gas and petroleum production, are one exception; however, as shown in Table 4, The Freight Analysis Framework (FAF) forecasts pipelines to grow at a slower pace in the coming decades, mainly in response to volatility in the energy markets. Air cargo tons and value have also grown quickly over the past several years—a trend that is expected to continue out to 2045.

Table 5. Historical and forecasted tons and value, 2007 to 2045.
Domestic Mode	Historical Average Annual Growth Rate 2007 to 2015 (percent)		Forecasted Average Annual Growth Rate 2015 to 2045 (percent)
Domestic Mode	Tons	Value	Tons	Value
Air (include truck-air)	4.4	9.1	4.1	4.8
Multiple modes & mail	-4.7	0.0	1.6	2.4
No domestic mode	-1.2	2.7	0.3	0.3
Other and unknown	-24.5	-20.6	-0.3	4.7
Pipeline	9.0	6.5	1.1	0.7
Rail	-2.2	0.4	0.7	2.0
Truck	-1.8	-0.2	1.2	2.1
Water	3.1	14.5	1.1	2.6
Total	-0.6	0.5	1.1	2.2

Source: USDOT, Draft National Freight Strategic Plan, BTS Special Tabulation, Figure 4. (https://www.transportation.gov/sites/dot.gov/files/docs/DRAFT_NFSP_for_Public_Comment_508_10 15 15 v1.pdf).
Note: FAF made specific revisions to its modal and commodity definitions from 2007 to 2015; however, these changes are unlikely to alter significantly the tendency of the historical results shown in this table. Value was adjusted for inflation.

Multimodal Perspective – Commodity Forecast

The FAF developed forecasts by projecting the level of economic activity in each commodity-producing industry and deriving freight transportation requirements. Table 6 provides a summary of these commodity-level projections. From 2007 to 2015, the economic recession depressed the flows of most commodities. The commodities that decreased the most in tonnage were waste/scrap, cereal grains, coal, gravel, and nonmetal mineral products. At the same time, measured by value, several commodities grew consistently over this period, such as mixed freight, gasoline, coal-n.e.c. (not elsewhere classified—mostly natural gas and petroleum products), fuel oils, and crude petroleum. Note that some of the growth in coal-n.e.c. can be attributed to a change in how activity was measured in the FAF; however, there has clearly been a rapid increase in natural gas production over the past five years.

Looking into the future, FAF forecasts tonnage growth in coal-n.e.c., nonmetal mineral products, other foodstuffs, waste/scrap, and basic chemicals. In terms of value, significant growth is expected from electronics, machinery, pharmaceuticals, and miscellaneous manufacturing products. Growth in these high value commodities will drive mode share increases for air (Table 5), while declines in bulk commodities will have a negative impact on rail mode share.

Table 6. Historical and forecasted commodity flows, 2007 to 2045.
Rank	Top Commodities by Tons	Tons		Rank	Top Commodities by Value	Value
Rank	Top Commodities by Tons	Historical Average Annual Growth Rate 2007 to 2015 (percent)	Forecasted Average Annual Growth Rate 2015 to 2045 (percent)	Rank	Top Commodities by Value	Historical Average Annual Growth Rate 2007 to 2015 (percent)	Forecasted Average Annual Growth Rate 2015 to 2045 (percent)
1	Coal-n.e.c.	9.3	1.5	1	Electronics	0.7	3.8
2	Gravel	-2.7	1.0	2	Motorized vehicles	0.6	1.3
3	Gasoline	2.5	-0.5	3	Mixed freight	2.7	1.7
4	Cereal grains	-3.6	0.9	4	Machinery	-6.4	3.3
5	Nonmetal man. prods.	-3.2	1.6	5	Gasoline	5.0	-0.6
6	Fuel oils	4.4	-0.3	6	Coal-n.e.c.	6.5	1.5
7	Coal	-4.5	-1.0	7	Pharmaceuticals	-1.0	3.4
8	Crude petroleum	1.0	-0.1	8	Fuel oils	8.0	-0.4
9	Other foodstuffs	3.4	1.8	9	Misc. mfg products	0.4	3.0
10	Waste/scrap	-8.5	1.7	10	Other foodstuffs	1.9	2.0
11	Natural sands	-0.2	1.4	11	Plastics/rubber	1.3	2.5
12	Other ag. prods.	3.0	1.6	12	Textiles/leather	-2.1	1.1
13	Wood prods.	0.5	0.8	13	Crude petroleum	4.8	-0.1
14	Basic chemicals	-1.6	2.0	14	Base metals	-1.6	1.4
15	Mixed freight	1.5	1.5	15	Precision instruments	1.4	4.5
	Other commodities	-2.5	1.8		Other commodities	-0.3	2.1
Total		-0.6	1.1	Total		0.5	2.2

n.e.c.=not elsewhere classified, ag=agricultural, mfg.=manufacturing, min=mineral, prods=products
Data Source: BTS and FHWA, Freight Analysis Framework, version 3.5 and 4.2, 2016 (https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/freight_analysis/faf/index.htm).
Note: FAF made specific revisions to its modal and commodity definitions from 2007 (version 3) to 2015 (version 4); however, these changes are unlikely to alter significantly the tendency of the historical results shown in this table. Value was adjusted for inflation.

Multimodal Perspective – International Trade

Trade with other countries has increased rapidly in recent decades, bringing the value of exports and imports to a total of $3.9 trillion in 2013. The freight transportation sector plays a critical role in connecting the U.S. economy to the rest of the world and ensuring the competitiveness of American businesses.

With the implementation of North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and increasing regional economic integration, U.S. border crossings have become an ever more important part of the freight transportation system. Trade by land between the United States and Mexico quadrupled in value from 1995 to 2014. Table 7 shows that each year around 11.2 million trucks and 2.0 million rail containers cross the Mexican or Canadian borders. Since 2010, truck crossings have increased at the fast pace of 2.4 percent per year and rail container crossings have grown at the impressive rate of 7.6 percent per year. Freight activity at the borders has rebounded strongly since the economic recession of 2008, with most of the gains coming from trade with Mexico.

Table 7. Thousands of border crossings and average annual percentage change, 2000 to 2014.
Type of Border	Shipment Type	2000	2010	2014	Annual Average Growth Rate (percent)
Type of Border	Shipment Type	2000	2010	2014	2000 to 2010	2010 to 2014
Canadian Border	Trucks	7,048	5,444	5,802	-2.5	1.6
	Loaded truck Containers	5,335	4,171	4,145	-2.4	-0.2
	Trains	33	26	29	-2.4	2.8
	Loaded rail containers	1,215	1,209	1,575	0.0	6.8
Mexican Borders	Trucks	4,526	4,743	5,415	0.5	3.4
	Loaded truck Containers	2,350	3,174	3,779	3.1	4.5
	Trains	7	8	10	1.3	5.7
	Loaded rail containers	266	318	474	1.8	10.5
Both Borders	Trucks	11,574	10,187	11,217	-1.3	5.7
	Loaded truck Containers	7,685	7,345	7,924	-0.5	1.9
	Trains	40	34	39	-1.6	3.5
	Loaded rail containers	1,481	1,5247	2,049	0.3	7.6

Source: BTS Freight Facts and Figures 2015 (https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/freight_analysis/faf/index.htm), Table 2-11.
Note: "Number of trains" includes both passenger and freight trains.

Truck – Commodities Moved

Trucks carry 64 percent of the tons and 69 percent of the value moved in the United States. As shown in Table 8, the top commodities moved by truck are gravel, nonmetallic mineral products, and cereal grains, which together represent more than 30 percent of all truck tons; however, from 2007 to 2015 all three of these commodities saw significant declines, leading overall truck tons to decline at an average rate of 1.8 percent during this period, despite commodities such as gasoline, other foodstuffs, and fuel oils increasing. The FAF predicts a rebound in truck tons over the coming decades, with an average growth rate of 1.2 percent per year.

On the other hand, as seen in Table 9, the top commodities in terms of value are mixed freight, motorized vehicles, and electronics. These three commodities saw moderate growth from 2007 to 2015; however, the fourth top commodity, machinery, saw a precipitous decline during this time. The FAF forecast predicts strong growth in electronics, pharmaceuticals, miscellaneous manufactured products, and a sharp rebound in machinery freight during the 2015-2045 period.

Table 8. Top commodities moved by truck, 2007 to 2045.
Rank	Top Commodities by Tonnage	Million Tons 2015	Percent of Tons	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Rank	Top Commodities by Tonnage	Million Tons 2015	Percent of Tons	Historical (2007 to 2015)	Forecasted (2015 to 2045)
1	Gravel	1,643	14.3	-2.7	1.0
2	Nonmetal mineral products	1,004	8.7	-4.1	0.8
3	Cereal grains	844	7.3	-4.1	0.8
4	Gasoline	719	6.2	2.6	-1.0
5	Other foodstuffs	630	5.5	3.3	1.8
6	Waste/scrap	599	5.2	-8.8	1.6
7	Fuel oils	541	4.7	4.6	-0.9
8	Natural sands	527	4.6	0.3	1.5
9	Other agricultural products	479	4.2	3.5	1.5
10	Coal-n.e.c.	407	3.5	-1.1	1.5
11	Wood products	390	3.4	0.8	0.7
12	Mixed freight	375	3.3	1.5	1.4
13	Logs	317	2.8	-5.8	0.9
14	Animal feed	299	2.6	3.8	1.4
15	Base metals	297	2.6	-1.4	1.4
	Other commodities	2,442	21.2	-2.6	1.7
Total		11,513	100.0	-1.8	1.2

n.e.c.=not elsewhere classified, USD=U.S. dollars
Source: BTS and FHWA Freight Analysis Framework, version 3.5 and 4.2, 2016 (https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/freight_analysis/faf/index.htm).
Note: FAF made specific revisions to its modal and commodity definitions from 2007 (version 3) to 2015 (version 4); however, these changes are unlikely to alter significantly the tendency of the historical results shown in this table. Value was adjusted for inflation.

Table 9. Top commodities moved by truck, by value, 2007 to 2045.
Rank	Top Commodities by Value	Billion USD 2015	Percent of USD	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Rank	Top Commodities by Value	Billion USD 2015	Percent of USD	Historical (2007 to 2015)	Forecasted (2015 to 2045)
1	Mixed freight	1,315	9.9	3.8	1.5
2	Motorized vehicles	1,131	8.5	2.5	1.2
3	Electronics	1,029	7.8	1.9	3.7
4	Machinery	882	6.6	-6.5	3.1
5	Gasoline	671	5.1	6.1	-1.0
6	Other foodstuffs	646	4.9	2.9	1.9
7	Plastics/rubber	537	4.0	2.5	2.3
8	Misc. manufactured products	516	3.9	1.6	3.1
9	Pharmaceuticals	477	3.6	-3.0	3.2
10	Fuel oils	475	3.6	9.6	-1.0
11	Textiles/leather	474	3.6	-0.9	1.0
12	Base metals	461	3.5	0.3	1.4
13	Articles-base metal	380	2.9	-3.0	2.0
14	Furniture	361	2.7	7.2	2.5
15	Chemical products	358	2.7	0.7	2.6
	Other	3,553	26.8	1.1	1.9
Total		13,267	100.0	1.1	2.1

USD=United States Dollar
Source: BTS and FHWA Freight Analysis Framework 3.5 and 4.2 (https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/freight_analysis/faf/index.htm).
Note: FAF made specific revisions to its modal and commodity definitions from 2007 (version 3) to 2015 (version 4); however, these changes are unlikely to alter significantly the tendency of the historical results shown in this table. Value was adjusted for inflation.

Truck – Sector Characteristics

The truck fleet in service is highly diverse and provides a variety of functions throughout the country. As shown in Table 10, single-unit trucks travel more frequently on urban roads than combination trucks, as they are used more frequently for urban deliveries. On the other hand, combination trucks travel more frequently on intercity routes, accruing more mileage on interstate highways.

Table 10. Truck vehicle miles traveled by roadway type, 2014.
Roadway Type	Single-Unit Trucks		Combination Trucks		All Vehicles
Roadway Type	Billion VMT	Percent	Billion VMT	Percent	Billion VMT	Percent
Rural - Total	42.7	39	89.5	53	234.3	30
Rural - Interstate	9.3	8	46.8	28	355.1	8
Rural - Arterial	16.3	15	29.3	17	334.4	12
Rural - Other	17.1	16	13.4	8	920.9	11
Urban - Total	66.6	61	80.4	47	519.8	70
Urban - Interstate	16.5	15	40.9	24	1,584.9	17
Urban - Other	50.1	46	39.5	23	2,104.7	52
Total Urban and Rural	109.3	100	169.8	100	3,025.7	100

VMT = vehicle miles traveled
Source: FHWA Highway Statistics 2014, Table VM-1 (https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2014/vm1.cfm).
Note: Single-units trucks have two axles and at least six tires or a gross vehicle weight rating exceeding 10,000 lbs.

As shown in Table 11, combination trucks and single-unit trucks account for 9.2 percent of total miles driven in the United States in 2014. In that year, 8.3 million single-unit trucks and 2.5 million combination trucks were registered. On average, combination trucks drove around six times more miles per year than single-unit trucks.

Table 11. Truck vehicle miles traveled and registrations, 2014.
Vehicle Type	Urban and Rural Miles		Registered Vehicles		Average VMT per year
Vehicle Type	Billion VMT	Percent	Billion VMT	Percent	Average VMT per year
Single-unit trucks	109.3	3.6	8.33	3.2	13,123
Combination Trucks	169.8	5.6	2.58	1.0	65,897
All Vehicles	3,025.7	100	260.4	100.0	11,621

VMT = vehicle miles traveled
Source: FHWA Highway Statistics 2014, Table VM-1, (https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2014/vm1.cfm).

As can be seen in Table 12, total truck miles decreased from 2007 to 2010 primarily due to the effects of the economic recession. Single-unit truck vehicle miles traveled (VMT) decreased more quickly than VMT for combination trucks. The mileage traveled by all vehicles in the United States decreased as well, albeit not as quickly. Since 2010, most of the increase in truck travel has been on urban interstate highways, where truck traffic is growing at a pace much faster than general traffic, while declines in truck travel have occurred on rural interstates and non-interstate roads.

Table 12. Trends in truck vehicle miles traveled and registrations, 2007 to 2013 (percent).
Variables		Urban		Rural		All Roads
Variables		Interstate	Non-Interstate	Interstate	Non-Interstate	All Roads
Average Annual Growth Rate 2007 to 2010	System lane-miles	1.12	1.69	0.02	0.02	0.49
	Sing-unit truck VMT	-4.51	-3.08	0.45	-2.16	0.49
	Combination truck VMT	-2.70	-0.36	-2.62	-0.55	-1.55
	All vehicle VMT	-0.38	-0.21	-1.42	-1.66	-0.71
Average Annual Growth Rate 2010 to 2013	System lane-miles	2.34	2.35	-0.74	-0.56	0.29
	Sing-unit truck VMT	2.34	2.35	-0.74	-0.56	0.29
	Combination truck VMT	3.29	-2.68	-0.74	-4.73	-1.41
	All vehicle VMT	1.88	0.79	-1.57	-1.41	0.24

VMT = vehicle miles traveled
Source: FHWA Highway Statistics 2007 - 2014, Table VM-1 (https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2014/vm1.cfm).

Currently in the United States, more than 4 million centerline miles of public roads exist, of which 230,000 are interstates or high-volume highways. Roadway lane miles increased at 0.5 percent per year from 2007 to 2010 and 0.3 percent per year from 2010 through 2013. The roadway network also includes more than 600,000 bridges.

Rail – Commodities Moved

Rail moves 9.0 percent of tons and 3.0 percent of freight value in the United States. The single most important commodity for rail is coal. As can be seen in Table 13, in 2015 coal accounted for 36.3 percent of all tons moved. However, from 2007 to 2015, shipments of coal have been declining rapidly, averaging 6.1 percent per year. The FAF predicts that these declines will continue as the energy mix within the United States changes in response to more stringent environmental regulations and the emergence of alternative energy sources.

Declines in coal shipments from 2007 to 2015 were partially offset by increases in shipments of other energy products, such as crude petroleum and gasoline, because pipeline capacity could not accommodate the boom in domestic production. However, this is unlikely to continue as pipeline capacity catches up to demand and uncertainty in world oil markets makes U.S. crude less competitive. Shipments of other commodities such as cereal grains, fertilizers, plastic/rubber, and other foodstuffs have increased since 2007 and are expected to continue increasing out to 2045.

Table 13. Top commodities moved by rail, by tonnage, 2007 to 2045.
Rank	Top Commodities by Tonnage	Million Tons 2015	Percent of Tons	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Rank	Top Commodities by Tonnage	Million Tons 2015	Percent of Tons	Historical (2007 to 2015)	Forecasted (2015 to 2045)
1	Coal	615.0	36.3	-6.1	-1.3
2	Cereal Grains	197.7	11.7	2.3	0.8
3	Basic chemicals	111.7	6.6	-0.8	2.1
4	Gravel	79.0	4.7	0.2	0.7
5	Fertilizers	69.7	4.1	5.4	1.5
6	Plastics/rubber	58.4	3.4	2.8	2.9
7	Metallic ores	56.5	3.3	-0.2	0.5
8	Other foodstuffs	48.8	2.9	5.9	2.1
9	Coal-n.e.c.	47.9	2.8	-6.9	1.6
10	Base metals	45.1	2.7	-2.9	1.3
11	Nonmetal mineral products	38.0	2.2	6.6	1.7
12	Crude petroleum	35.8	2.1	65.3	-0.9
13	Waste/scrap	30.7	1.8	-4.0	1.6
14	Wood products	28.1	1.7	-2.3	2.0
15	Other agricultural products	26.1	1.5	5.3	1.7
	Other	205.2	12.1	-0.1	1.8
Total		1,693.5	100.0	-2.2	-0.7

Table 14. Top commodities moved by rail, by tonnage, 2007 to 2045.
Rank	Top Commodities by Value	Billion USD 2015	Percent of USD	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Rank	Top Commodities by Value	Billion USD 2015	Percent of USD	Historical (2007 to 2015)	Forecasted (2015 to 2045)
1	Motorized vehicles	103.3	15.2	-3.6	2.1
2	Plastics/rubber	86.5	12.8	3.5	3.1
3	Basic chemicals	80.7	11.9	0.1	2.3
4	Cereal grains	53.6	7.9	6.4	0.9
5	Base metals	44.3	6.5	-4.9	1.4
6	Other foodstuffs	33.6	4.9	8.7	2.4
7	Coal-n.e.c.	30.1	4.4	-4.5	1.6
8	Crude petroleum	24.7	3.6	71.4	-0.9
9	Coal	23.7	3.5	-2.8	-1.0
10	Fertilizers	23.1	3.4	8.3	1.7
11	Gasoline	18.7	2.8	14.9	1.9
12	Newsprint/paper	17.6	2.6	-2.0	1.5
13	Other agricultural products	15.2	2.2	8.4	2.0
14	Chemical products	12.6	1.9	1.4	3.0
15	Machinery	11.2	1.6	-3.0	4.1
	Other	99.4	14.7	-1.1	2.2
Total		678.3	100.0	0.4	2.0

n.e.c.=not elsewhere classified, USD=U.S. dollars
Source: BTS and FHWA, Freight Analysis Framework, version 3.5 and 4.1, 2016 (https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/freight_analysis/faf/index.htm).
Note: FAF made specific revisions to its modal and commodity definitions from 2007 to 2015; however, these changes are unlikely to alter significantly the tendency of the historical results shown in this table.

Faced with declines and slow growth in coal and other bulk commodities transported by carload service, railroads have generally adopted the strategy of improving the competitiveness of their intermodal service to gain market share from trucks. Railroads have accomplished this by reducing travel times, improving reliability, and serving a wider variety of markets. As can be seen in Table 15, the majority of freight still used carload service, representing 90 percent of tons and 84 percent of ton-miles. However, since 2000 there has been a steady increase in the proportion of intermodal freight in terms of both tons and ton-miles. At the same time, rail shipments appear to be growing in length as railroads connect markets farther away from each other.

Table 15. Rail intermodal vs carload, 2000 to 2014.
Variables	2000	2010	2014	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Variables	2000	2010	2014	2000 to 2010	2010 to 2014
Total Rail Tons (billion)	2.02	1.85	1.88	-0.9	0.5
Share Carload Tons	91.9	91.3	89.8	-	-
Share Intermodal Tons	8.1	8.7	10.2	-	-
Total Rail Ton-mile (trillion)	1.51	1.69	1.81	1.1	1.7
Share Carload Ton-miles	84.4	84.8	83.5	-	-
Share Intermodal Ton-miles	15.6	15.2	16.5	-	-
Rail Length of Haul (miles)	748	916	963	2.0	1.3
Carload Length of Haul (miles)	688	851	896	2.2	1.3
Intermodal Length of Haul (miles)	1,443	1,598	1,562	1.0	-0.6

Source: STB Public Waybill Samples 2000 - 2014 (https://www.stb.gov/stb/industry/econ_waybill.html).

Table 16 highlights the commodity trends that are driving changes in intermodal and carload freight activity. Of the top six carload commodities, half have declined rapidly since 2010. Coal declined at 2.2 percent per year over this period, which affected rail greatly as it contributed to 40 percent of carload ton-miles in 2014. On the other hand, freight flows of crude petroleum have almost doubled each year since 2010, and shipments of nonmetallic minerals have grown substantially at 16 percent per year. Since 2010, intermodal ton-miles have grown three times faster than carload ton-miles. Most of this growth came from shipments of chemical products, apparel, food, and paper.

Table 16. Top carload commodities by rail service type, by ton miles, 2000 to 2014.
Rank	Top Commodities by Ton-miles	Billions of Ton-miles 2014	Percent of Ton-miles	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Rank	Top Commodities by Ton-miles	Billions of Ton-miles 2014	Percent of Ton-miles	2000 to 2010	2010 to 2014
1	Coal	614.2	40.6	2.3	-2.2
2	Chemical products	192.0	12.7	1.8	1.9
3	Agriculture	148.7	9.8	2.2	-2.5
4	Food	108.7	7.2	2.8	-1.5
5	Crude petroleum	88.7	5.9	28.6	95.2
6	Nonmetallic minerals	81.0	5.4	1.0	15.5
7	Lumber	48.6	3.2	-5.2	4.7
8	Refined petroleum products	42.7	2.8	0.8	3.5
9	Metal	42.2	2.8	-2.6	2.8
10	Paper	37.3	2.5	-2.9	-2.0
11	Transportation equipment	37.2	2.5	-4.1	7.3
12	Clay, concrete, glass	31.7	2.1	-3.1	3.1
13	Waste	17.7	1.2	-0.8	-2.3
14	Metallic ores	17.2	1.1	0.8	0.7
15	Hazardous materials	3.1	0.2	-9.6	-5.1
	Other	3.1	0.2	-9.6	-5.1
Total		1,512.7	100.0	1.2	1.3

Source: STB Public Waybill Samples 2000 - 2014 (https://www.stb.gov/stb/industry/econ_waybill.html).

Table 17. Top intermodal commodities by rail service type, by ton miles, 2000 to 2014.
Rank	Top Intermodal Commodities by Ton-miles	Billions of Ton-miles 2014	Percent of Ton-miles	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Rank	Top Intermodal Commodities by Ton-miles	Billions of Ton-miles 2014	Percent of Ton-miles	2000 to 2010	2010 to 2014
1	Misc. mixed shipments	186.0	62.4	0.0	3.3
2	Food	21.2	7.1	3.9	5.6
3	Agriculture	13.8	4.6	19.1	0.7
4	Chemical products	11.1	3.7	3.9	17.1
5	Shipping containers	9.7	3.2	-0.2	-0.9
6	Paper	8.3	2.8	5.0	6.7
7	Apparel	7.2	2.4	9.2	12.9
8	Transportation equipment	7.2	2.4	0.9	9.7
9	Waste	4.4	1.5	7.5	0.3
10	Freight forwarder traffic	3.8	1.3	-2.9	-8.7
11	Rubber/plastics	3.7	1.2	8.3	0.6
12	Electrical equipment	2.6	0.9	5.2	7.9
13	Small packaged freight	2.6	0.9	5.2	7.9
14	Furniture	2.4	0.8	3.0	12.1
15	Metal products	1.9	0.6	9.5	2.7
	Other	12.2	4.1	-4.1	2.1
Total		298.2	100.0	0.9	3.9

Source: STB Public Waybill Samples 2000 - 2014 (https://www.stb.gov/stb/industry/econ_waybill.html).

Rail – Sector Characteristics

The railroad sector has undergone significant changes over the last 20 years. As Table 18 shows, track mileage has decreased rapidly since 1990 as the sector shed less profitable routes and focused on key corridors. Declines in total system mileage have occurred primarily in parts of the network owned by Class 1 and regional railroads, while the system miles owned by local railroads have grown over this period. Overall railroad productivity has soared, allowing railroads to move more freight with less. In 2012, Class 1 railroads owned 69 percent of system miles, with the remainder split between regional and local railroads.

Table 18. Rail industry characteristics, 1990 to 2013.
Key Variables	1990	2000	2010	2011	2012	2013	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Key Variables	1990	2000	2010	2011	2012	2013	1990 to 2000	2000 to 2011
System Miles - All Rail	175,909	170,512	138,576	138,518	138,477	-	-0.31	-2.05
System Miles - Class 1	133,189	120,597	95,573	95,387	95,264	-	-0.99	-2.30
System Miles - Regional	18,375	20,978	10,407	10,355	10,355	-	1.33	-6.77
System Miles - Local	24,337	28,937	32,596	32,776	32,858	-	1.75	1.20
Railroad Companies	530	560	565	567	-	-	0.55	0.09
Class 1 Railroads	14	8	7	7	-	-	-5.44	-1.33
Other Railroads	516	552	558	560	-	-	0.68	0.11
Class 1 Locomotives	18,835	20,028	23,893	24,250	24,707	25,033	0.62	1.78
Class 1 Freight Cars	658,902	560,154	397,730	380,699	380,641	373,838	-1.61	-3.37
Other Freight Cars	103,527	132,448	101,755	95,972	92,742	88,122	2.49	-2.60
Carloads (million)	21.4	27.8	29.2	30.0	28.4	28.8	2.64	0.51
Revenue Ton-miles (trillion)	1.03	1.47	1.69	1.73	1.71	1.74	3.55	1.44
Tons (billions)	1.42	1.74	1.85	1.85	1.76	1.76	2.01	2.01

Source: AAR Railroad Facts 2014 Edition; BTS National Transportation Statistics (http://www.rita.dot.gov/bts/sites/rita.dot.gov.bts/files/publications/national_transportation_statistics/html/table_01_11.html).

Waterborne – Commodities Moved

The rapid increase of international trade over the past decades, especially across the Pacific Ocean, has given added importance to ports and other waterborne infrastructure in the U.S. economy. Unlike the commodity tables for other modes that have focused on freight movements within the country, Table 19 includes both domestic and international shipments. It is necessary to include international shipments because waterborne transportation plays a more important role in connecting America to the rest of the world than moving goods internally—around 72 percent of international trade tons leave or enter the United States by water.

Energy commodities such as crude petroleum, gasoline, coal, and fuel oils represent the top four commodities by tonnage, accounting for 48 percent of all tons in 2015. From 2007 to 2015, crude, petroleum, and cereal grains decreased substantially, although increases in fuel oils, coal, gasoline, and other agriculture products partially offset these declines.

Crude petroleum is also a top commodity handled in terms of value, although consumer goods on international shipments play a larger role by this metric. Motorized vehicles, machinery, electronics, and textiles are the top commodities moved in terms of value and are likely to continue growing through 2045 as international trade continues to expand. Indeed, FAF projects waterborne tons to grow at 2.6 percent per year and value to grow at 3.9 percent per year, which is significantly faster than looking just at domestic waterborne cargo (Table 19 and 20).

Table 19. Top commodities moved by domestic and international waterborne, by tonnage, 2007 to 2045.
Rank	Top Commodities by Tonnage	Million Tons 2015	Percent of Tons	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Rank	Top Commodities by Tonnage	Million Tons 2015	Percent of Tons	Historical (2007 to 2015)	Forecasted (2015 to 2045)
1	Crude petroleum	265.8	19.1	-6.3	0.3
2	Fuel Oils	192.7	13.8	8.5	1.4
3	Coal	127.8	9.2	7.0	1.3
4	Chemical products	11.1	3.7	3.9	17.1
5	Cereal grains	82.9	5.9	-1.9	2.5
6	Other agricultural products	70.6	5.1	4.5	4.3
7	Basic chemicals	57.1	4.1	0.5	4.1
8	Nonmetallic minerals	41.8	3.0	-5.1	1.6
9	Waste/scrap	40.4	2.9	0.3	4.9
10	Base metals	38.6	2.8	1.1	1.9
11	Metallic ores	37.7	2.7	0.1	1.6
12	Other foodstuffs	33.5	2.4	4.8	4.1
13	Plastics/rubber	29.0	2.1	1.6	4.6
14	Machinery	24.6	1.8	5.1	4.7
15	Fertilizers	24.0	1.7	2.4	1.3
	Other commodities	245.6	17.6	-3.8	4.3
Total		1,394.8	100.0	-0.7	2.6

Source: BTS and FHWA Freight Analysis Framework 3.5 and 4.2 (https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/freight_analysis/faf/index.htm).
Note: FAF made specific revisions to its modal and commodity definitions from 2007 (version 3) to 2015 (version 4); however, these changes are unlikely to alter significantly the tendency of the historical results shown in this table. Value adjusted for inflation.

Table 20. Top commodities moved by domestic and international waterborne, by value, 2007 to 2045.
Rank	Top Commodities by Value	Billions USD 2015	Percent of USD	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Rank	Top Commodities by Value	Billions USD 2015	Percent of USD	Historical (2007 to 2015)	Forecasted (2015 to 2045)
1	Motorized vehicles	197.6	9.8	1.2	2.8
2	Machinery	173.2	8.6	0.9	4.8
3	Crude petroleum	172.9	8.6	-3.1	0.2
4	Electronics	171.9	8.5	4.4	5.2
5	Textiles/leather	144.8	7.2	1.8	4.0
6	Fuel oils	135.6	6.7	14.0	1.5
7	Plastics/rubber	94.3	4.7	3.9	4.5
8	Basic chemicals	83.6	4.1	2.8	4.2
9	Gasoline	75.1	3.7	9.1	0.2
10	Other agricultural products	68.0	3.4	8.6	4.4
11	Articles-base metal	60.4	3.0	2.7	3.2
12	Base metals	59.3	2.9	2.7	3.2
13	Misc. manufacturing products	54.4	2.7	0.3	4.7
14	Other foodstuffs	48.5	2.4	7.3	4.1
15	Chemical products	46.5	2.3	3.9	5.5
	Other commodities	429.3	21.3	4.3	4.6
Total		2,015.4	100.0	3.0	3.9

USD=U.S. dollars
Source: BTS and FHWA Freight Analysis Framework 3.5 and 4.2 (https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/freight_analysis/faf/index.htm).
Note: FAF made specific revisions to its modal and commodity definitions from 2007 (version 3) to 2015 (version 4); however, these changes are unlikely to alter significantly the tendency of the historical results shown in this table. Value was adjusted for inflation.

Waterborne – Main Ports

As Table 21 shows, on average, half of the tonnage handled at U.S. ports is domestic and the rest comprises either imports or exports. The Port of South Louisiana, Port of New Orleans, and Port of Baton Rouge handle a high proportion of domestic cargo, while ports on the West Coast, such as the Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach, primarily receive imports from Asia. Just 10 deep-water ports (that can accept large ships due to having water depth of 30 feet or more) are responsible for 65 percent of the value of containerized international trade.

Since 2010, the ports that have seen the fastest growth in tonnage have been the Port of South Louisiana, Port of Beaumont, Port of Corpus Christi, Port of New Orleans, and Port of Baton Rouge. It is uncertain how exactly the Panama Canal expansion will affect international shipping; however, the potential exists for this project to have a substantial impact on the geography of maritime transport. To take advantage of these changes many ports have invested significantly in dredging and deepening projects to accommodate larger ships, affecting their competitive position moving forward.

Table 21. Top ports by total tons, 2014.
Rank	Top Ports by Tons	2014				Average Annual Growth Rate of Total Tons (percent)
Rank	Top Ports by Tons	Total Million Tons	Percent Domestic	Percent Imports	Percent Exports	2000 to 2010	2010 to 2014
1	South Louisiana, Louisiana, Port	267.4	53	15	32	0.9	3.1
2	Houston, Texas	234.3	31	33	36	2.0	0.8
3	New York, New York and New Jersey	126.2	37	48	15	0.1	-2.4
4	Beaumont, Texas	87.3	39	45	16	0.0	3.2
5	Long Beach, California	85.0	13	56	31	0.8	3.0
6	Corpus Christi, Texas	84.9	47	31	22	-1.0	3.6
7	New Orleans, Louisiana	84.5	56	21	23	-2.2	3.9
8	Baton Rouge, Louisiana	69.2	62	19	20	-1.6	5.6
9	Mobile, Alabama	64.3	43	28	29	0.4	3.6
10	Los Angeles, California	61.0	9	56	34	2.6	-0.6
11	Lake Charles, Louisiana	56.8	49	35	15	0.3	1.0
12	Plaquemines, Louisiana, Port of	55.5	64	4	32	-0.7	-0.2
13	Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky, Ports	49.9	100	0	0	-	-
14	Norfolk Harbor, Virginia	48.0	13	22	66	0.2	3.7
15	Texas City, Texas	47.9	39	32	28	-0.3	-4.1
16	Huntington - Tristate	46.4	100	0	0	-	-
17	St. Louis, Missouri and Illinois	38.9	100	0	0	-0.8	6.0
18	Duluth-Superior, Minnesota and Wisconsin	37.4	76	2	22	-1.3	0.5
19	Baltimore, Maryland	37.2	18	35	47	-0.3	-1.6
20	Port Arthur, Texas	36.7	30	20	50	3.9	4.9
	Other ports	986.8	55	25	20	-	-
Total Top 150 Ports		2,605.5	49	26	24	-	-

Source: USACE US Waterway Data, Principal Ports of the United States (http://www.navigationdatacenter.us/data/datappor.htm).

There are approximately 360 commercial sea, river, and lake ports with 3,200 cargo and passenger terminals. Inland navigation is possible through an extensive network of 12,000 miles of waterways and 240 locks and dams. More than 38,000 domestic maritime vessels, including tugs, barges, and oceangoing ships, use these waterways.

Some ports specialize in the handling of containers on international shipments. Table 22 shows the number of containers passing through the top 20 ports in the U.S. The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach handled 32 percent of all containerized cargo. Along with the Ports of Oakland and Seattle, these serve as the main gateways for trade with Asia. On the East Coast, the Ports of New York/New Jersey, Savannah, and Hampton Roads are the largest handlers of containerized cargo. Inland access from the ports is provided by trucks and intermodal railroads.

Table 22. Top ports by Twenty-Foot Equivalent Unit, 2015.
Rank	Top Ports by TEUs	Millions of TEUs 2015	Percent Change 2014 to 2015
1	Los Angeles, California	8.16	-2.20
2	Long Beach, California	7.19	5.40
3	New York/New Jersey	6.37	10.40
4	Savannah, Georgia	3.74	11.70
5	Seattle/Tacoma Alliance, Washington	3.53	4.00
6	Hampton Roads, Virginia	2.55	6.50
7	Oakland, California	2.28	-4.90
8	Houston, Texas	2.13	9.20
9	Charleston, South Carolina	1.97	10.10
10	Honolulu, Hawaii (FY)	1.21	7.60
11	San Juan, Puerto Rico (FY)	1.21	-8.30
12	Port Everglades, Florida (FY)	1.06	4.70
13	Miami, Florida (FY)	1.01	15.00
14	Jacksonville, Florida (FY)	0.92	-2.30
15	Baltimore, Maryland	0.84	9.10
16	New Orleans, Louisiana	0.52	7.00
17	Anchorage, Alaska	0.49	-16.90
18	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	0.43	-4.80
19	Wilmington, Delaware	0.34	0.90
20	Wilmington, North Carolina	0.34	0.90
	Other	1.87	-4.50
Total US Ports		48.11	3.80

TEU=twenty-foot equivalent units, FY=fiscal year
Source: American Association of Port Authorities, NAFTA Container Port Ranking 2015 (http://www.aapa-ports.org/unifying/content.aspx?ItemNumber=21048).

Air – Commodities Moved

Air freight specializes in high value commodities that are time-sensitive. Table 23 shows that electronics and machinery represent the top commodities for air, combining to make up more than 30 percent of all tons shipped and more than 40 percent of all value shipped. From 2007 to 2015, many of the top commodities in terms of tonnage decreased, primarily because of the economic recession. This led the air sector as a whole to decline by 2.3 percent per year over that time. However, some commodities saw substantial growth, including meat/seafood, animal feed, and motorized vehicles. Looking into the future, the FAF projects air cargo to be the fastest growing freight mode in the United States, with tonnages growing at 4.3 percent per year and value growing at 5.0 percent per year. FAF predicts that almost all air cargo commodities will see substantial growth, with electronics, machinery, precision instruments, and pharmaceuticals growing the fastest. Tables 23 and 24 include freight shipments of more than 100 pounds moved by commercial or private aircraft providing freighter or express service.

Table 23. Top commodities moved by domestic or international air, by tonnage, 2007 to 2045.
Rank	Top Commodities by Tonnage	Million Tons 2015	Percent of Tons	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Rank	Top Commodities by Tonnage	Million Tons 2015	Percent of Tons	Historical (2007 to 2015)	Forecasted (2015 to 2045)
1	Electronics	2.11	19.9	0.3	5.0
2	Machinery	1.26	11.9	-6.6	4.7
3	Textiles/leather	0.81	7.7	-3.0	3.8
4	Other agricultural products	0.71	6.4	-1.2	4.6
5	Precision Instruments	0.66	6.2	-0.7	5.7
6	Motorized vehicles	0.57	5.4	3.2	1.7
7	Articles-base metal	0.48	4.6	-1.9	3.7
8	Plastics/rubber	0.45	4.2	-1.7	4.3
9	Meat/seafood	0.43	4.0	17.3	3.1
10	Chemical products	0.38	3.6	-4.9	5.1
11	Animal feed	0.37	3.5	38.0	3.1
12	Misc. manufacturing products	0.36	3.4	-4.5	4.0
13	Basic chemicals	0.26	2.4	2.7	3.6
14	Pharmaceuticals	0.25	2.4	-0.1	5.0
15	Transport equipment	0.23	2.2	4.0	4.0
	Other commodities	0.25	11.8	-8.8	3.5
Total		10.58	100.0	-2.3	4.3

Source: BTS and FHWA Freight Analysis Framework 3.5 and 4.2 (https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/freight_analysis/faf/index.htm).
Note: FAF made specific revisions to its modal and commodity definitions from 2007 (version 3) to 2015 (version 4), however these changes are unlikely to alter significantly the tendency of the historical results shown in this table. Value adjusted for inflation.

Table 24. Top commodities moved by domestic or international air, by value, 2007 to 2045.
Rank	Top Commodities by Value	Billions USD 2015	Percent of USD	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Rank	Top Commodities by Value	Billions USD 2015	Percent of USD	Historical (2007 to 2015)	Forecasted (2015 to 2045)
1	Electronics	392.1	31.8	2.6	5.2
2	Misc. mfg. products	162.5	13.2	0.5	5.0
3	Precision instruments	13.2	0.5	0.5	5.0
4	Machinery	128.6	10.4	-8.2	4.8
5	Pharmaceuticals	99.6	8.1	1.9	5.1
6	Transportation equipment	79.8	6.5	0.1	4.1
7	Basic chemicals	78.2	6.3	10.0	4.1
8	Textiles/leather	27.9	2.3	-2.8	3.7
9	Motorized vehicles	23.2	1.9	8.1	2.0
10	Chemical products	22.1	1.8	1.0	5.2
11	Articles-base metal	16.4	1.3	2.5	3.6
12	Plastics/rubber	14.3	1.2	3.1	4.4
13	Mixed freight	11.7	1.0	-12.9	4.4
14	Nonmetal mineral products	5.9	0.5	0.5	4.4
15	Waste/scrap	5.3	0.4		5.6
	Other commodities	32.8	2.7	1.9	3.8
Total		1,232.4	100.0	0.0	5.0

USD=U.S. dollars
Source: BTS and FHWA Freight Analysis Framework 3.5 and 4.2 (https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/freight_analysis/faf/index.htm).
Note: FAF made specific revisions to its modal and commodity definitions from 2007 (version 3) to 2015 (version 4), however these changes are unlikely to alter significantly the tendency of the historical results shown in this table. Value was adjusted for inflation.

Air – Main Airports

As Table 25 demonstrates, the airport that lands the most tons in the United States is Memphis International Airport, which is the air hub of FedEx. The airport with the second highest tonnage is Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, although the majority of tons landed never leave the airport because freighter airlines use it primarily as a refueling stop on international flights between Asia and the United States. The airport with the third highest tonnage is Louisville International Airport, which is the air hub of United Parcel Service. Currently more than 500 commercial airports and thousands of general aviation airports handle air cargo throughout the country.

Table 25. Top airports by air cargo, 2000 to 2013.
Rank	Airport Code	Top Airports by Landed Tons	Millions of Tons 2013	Percent of Tons	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Rank	Airport Code	Top Airports by Landed Tons	Millions of Tons 2013	Percent of Tons	2000 to 2010	2010 to 2013
1	MEM	Memphis Intl.	4.58	13.6	33.2	2.0
2	ANC	Ted Stevens Anchorage Intl.	4.06	12.1	4.9	-7.1
3	SDF	Louisville International Airport	2.45	7.3	49.5	0.8
4	LAX	Los Angeles Intl.	2.03	6.0	2.2	0.5
5	MIA	Miami Intl.	2.11	6.3	3.1	1.3
6	ORD	Chicago O'Hare Intl.	1.57	4.7	3.2	-3.0
7	JFK	John F Kennedy Intl.	1.45	4.3	-0.7	-4.1
8	IND	Indianapolis Intl.	1.10	3.3	32.4	1.9
9	ATL	Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta Intl.	0.79	2.3	0.2	-1.7
10	DFW	Dallas Fort Worth Intl.	0.75	2.2	5.8	-3.4
11	EWR	Newark Liberty Intl.	0.74	2.2	6.0	-7.4
12	CVG	Cincinnati Northern Kentucky Intl.	0.66	2.0	7.5	15.4
13	OAK	Metropolitan Oakland Intl.	0.57	1.7	29.8	0.5
14	HNL	Honolulu Intl.	0.63	1.9	4.0	0.8
15	SFO	San Francisco Intl.	0.50	1.5	-5.7	-1.7
16	IAH	George Bush Intercontinental	0.50	1.5	6.1	-1.0
17	ONT	Ontario Intl.	0.47	1.4	34.0	0.4
18	PHL	Philadelphia Intl.	0.48	1.4	9.3	-2.7
19	SEA	Seattle Tacoma Intl.	0.41	1.2	2.8	-0.9
20	PHX	Phoenix Sky Harbor Intl.	0.29	0.9	5.9	0.9
Other Airports			7.46	22.2	7.2	-1.8
Total			33.61	100.0	6.9	-1.4

Intl=International
Source: BTS, T-100 Segment Data, 2000 - 2013 (http://www.transtats.bts.gov/Fields.asp?Table_ID=293).
Note: Considers airports with landed weight in excess of 100 million pounds.

Pipeline – Commodities Moved

Pipelines are an important part of the freight transportation system, delivering energy commodities to consumers around the United States or acting as gateways for energy exports to foreign markets. Pipelines move the second highest volume in terms of tonnage and third highest value in terms of dollars. As Table 26 shows, 64.5 percent of the tonnage carried by pipeline is coal-n.e.c., which mostly consists of natural gas and petroleum products. The introduction of new technologies in the extraction of natural gas has increased U.S. production considerably, leading to substantial growth from 2007 to 2015. Looking out to 2045, FAF expects the growth for this commodity to slow but still remain positive.

Table 26. Top commodities moved by pipeline, by tonnage, 2007 to 2045.
Rank	Top Commodities by Tonnage	Million Tons 2015	Percent of Tons	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Rank	Top Commodities by Tonnage	Million Tons 2015	Percent of Tons	Historical (2007 to 2015)	Forecasted (2015 to 2045)
1	Coal-n.e.c.	2,127.3	64.5	16.2	1.5
2	Crude petroleum	448.1	13.6	1.0	-0.2
3	Gasoline	385.5	11.7	1.5	0.0
4	Fuel oils	302.8	9.2	4.3	0.0
5	Basic chemicals	34.1	1.0	-4.6	2.3
Other		2.7	0.1	24.7	1.4
Total		3,300.4	100.0	9.0	1.1

n.e.c.= not elsewhere classified, USD=U.S. dollars
Source: BTS and FHWA Freight Analysis Framework 3.5 and 4.2 (https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/freight_analysis/faf/index.htm).
Note: FAF made specific revisions to its modal and commodity definitions from 2007 (version 3) to 2015 (version 4); however, these changes are unlikely to alter significantly the tendency of the historical results shown in this table. Value adjusted for inflation. Changes in the methodology used to account for natural gas from 2007 to 2015 could lead this table to overestimate the growth observed during this time period.

Table 27. Top commodities moved by pipeline, by value, 2007 to 2045.
Rank	Top Commodities by Tonnage	Billion USD 2015	Percent of USD	Average Annual Growth Rate (percent)
Rank	Top Commodities by Tonnage	Billion USD 2015	Percent of USD	Historical (2007 to 2015)	Forecasted (2015 to 2045)
1	Coal-n.e.c.	554.8	37.2	9.1	1.7
2	Gasoline	364.4	24.4	4.8	-0.1
3	Crude petroleum	299.9	20.1	4.8	-0.3
4	Fuel oils	241.6	16.2	7.7	0.0
5	Basic chemicals	29.4	2.0	-1.4	2.4
Other		1.7	0.1	9.4	2.6
Total		1,491.9	100.0	6.5	0.7

As Table 28 demonstrates, there are more than 2.4 million miles of pipeline in the United States serving a variety of functions. The majority, around 93 percent, are used for natural gas (including distribution). Mileage in natural gas pipelines has grown on average 1.2 percent per year from 2004 to 2010, slowing to 0.6 percent per year from 2010 to 2014.

Table 28. Extent of pipeline network, 2004 to 2014.
Pipeline Use	Thousand Miles 2014	Percent of Miles	Average Annual Growth (percent)
Pipeline Use	Thousand Miles 2014	Percent of Miles	2004 to 2010	2004 to 2010
Natural gas pipeline	2,253.7	93.1	1.2	0.6
Distribution main lines	1,142.3	47.2	1.2	0.7
Distribution service lines	783.5	32.4	1.8	0.9
Transmission	303.0	12.5	0.1	-0.2
Gathering	25.0	1.0	-3.9	-2.7
Oil	111.7	4.6	1.1	1.8
Crude oil	49.3	2.0	1.7	5.1
Refined petroleum	62.4	2.6	0.6	-1.2
Highly volatile liquids	51.8	2.1	1.9	3.2
Other	3.2	0.1	6.0	4.0
Total	2,420.4	100.0	1.3	0.8

Source: USDOT Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Annual Report Mileage Summary Statistics (http://www.phmsa.dot.gov/portal/site/PHMSA/).

Around 4.6 percent of pipeline mileage involves the transportation of crude oil or refined petroleum products. Oil pipeline mileage increased after 2010, especially for crude oil, which grew at 5.1 percent per year. This growth has come from the resurgence of domestic crude oil production, especially in the Bakken fields in North Dakota and Montana and the Eagle Ford and Permian Basins in Texas.

According to the NFSP (https://www.transportation.gov/freight/NFSP), even though the pipeline network is extensive, it is better positioned to move crude oil imports than the new domestic production. However, recent volatility in international oil markets has slowed to a halt investments in new pipeline capacity.

previous | next