BTS reports 2014 gains for U.S. transport with NAFTA trade partners

The Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) reported this week that four of five transportation modes – truck, rail, pipeline, and vessel – carried more U.S. freight with North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) partners Canada and Mexico by value in 2014 than in 2013.

And it added that the overall value of freight on all modes rose 4.5 percent in current dollars to $1.2 trillion

BTS said that on an annual basis from 2013 to 2014, the value of commodities moving by pipeline was up 12.5 percent, despite a decline in cost per unit of petroleum products,  and was also due to the increased volume of freight.

Truck increased 4.5 percent, rail increased 1.5 percent, vessel increased 0.2 percent, and air decreased 0.2 percent.

Trucks carried 59.9 percent of U.S.-NAFTA freight and were the most heavily utilized mode for moving goods to and from both U.S.-NAFTA partners. Trucks accounted for $348.7 billion of the $640.2 billion of imports (54.5 percent) and $365.9 billion of the $552.5 billion of exports (66.2 percent).

Rail remained the second largest mode, moving 14.9 percent of all U.S.-NAFTA freight, followed by vessel, 8.7 percent; pipeline, 7.9 percent and air, 3.7 percent. The surface transportation modes of truck, rail and pipeline carried 82.7 percent of the total U.S.-NAFTA freight flows.