March 2018 North American Freight Numbers
Date: Tuesday, May 22, 2018
Freight between the U.S. and other North American countries (Canada and Mexico) in March 2018:
- Most-used mode: Truck moved $66.5 billion of freight, up 4.1 percent compared to March 2017
- Second mode: Rail moved $16.1 billion of freight, up 1.9 percent compared to March 2017
Truck Freight
- Total: $66.5 billion (62.9 percent)
- By border:
- Compared to previous year:
- Top three states for truck freight moved through their border ports: (75.1 percent of total truck freight):
- Texas: $26.3 billion
- Michigan: $15.3 billion
- New York: $8.3 billion
- Busiest three truck border ports (46.4 percent of total truck freight) (Figure 1):
- Laredo, TX: $15.4 billion
- Detroit, MI: $10.1 billion
- El Paso, TX: $5.3 billion
- Top three truck commodities (50.9 percent of total truck freight) (Figure 2):
- Computers and parts: $12.9 billion
- Motor vehicles and parts: $10.9 billion
- Electrical machinery: $10.1 billion
Figure 1: Top 3 U.S. Ports by Truck
| Port of Entry/Exit | Mar. 2017 | Mar. 2018 |
|---|---|---|
| El Paso, Texas | 5,004 | 5,310 |
| Detroit, Michigan | 9,723 | 10,126 |
| Laredo, Texas | 14,410 | 15,450 |
Bureau of Transportation Statistics, TransBorder Freight Data, https://www.bts.gov/transborder
Figure 2: Top 3 Commodities by Truck
| Commodities | Mar. 2017 | Mar. 2018 |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical Machinery | 10,409 | 10,125 |
| Motor Vehicles and Parts | 9,810 | 10,896 |
| Computers and Parts | 11,826 | 12,851 |
Bureau of Transportation Statistics, TransBorder Freight Data, https://www.bts.gov/transborder
Rail Freight
- Total: $16.1 billion (15.2 percent)
- By border:
- Compared to previous year:
- Top three states for rail freight flowing through their border ports (77.0 percent of total rail freight):
- Texas: $6.3 billion
- Michigan: $4.8 billion
- New York: $1.3 billion
- Busiest three rail border ports (52.0 percent of total rail freight) (Figure 3):
- Laredo, TX: $3.7 billion
- Port Huron, MI: $2.3 billion
- Detroit, MI: $2.3 billion
- Top three rail commodities (60.7 percent of total rail freight) (Figure 4):
- Motor vehicles and parts: $8.0 billion
- Plastics: $949 million
- Computers and parts: $872 million
Figure 3: Top 3 U.S. Ports by Rail
| Port of Entry/Exit | Mar. 2017 | Mar. 2018 |
|---|---|---|
| Detroit, Michigan | 2,372 | 2,318 |
| Port Huron, Michigan | 1,972 | 2,333 |
| Laredo, Texas | 3,516 | 3,739 |
Bureau of Transportation Statistics, TransBorder Freight Data, https://www.bts.gov/transborder
Figure 4: Top 3 Commodities by Rail
| Commodities | Mar. 2017 | Mar. 2018 |
|---|---|---|
| Computers and Parts | 910 | 872 |
| Plastics | 853 | 949 |
| Motor Vehicles and Parts | 8,224 | 7,968 |
Bureau of Transportation Statistics, TransBorder Freight Data, https://www.bts.gov/transborder
Total and Freight by Other Modes
Total: $105.8 billion of freight by all modes of transportation, up 5.5 percent from March 2017 ($100.3 billion).
U.S.-Canada (both directions)
Almost all (99.4 percent) of pipeline freight between the U.S. and Canada were mineral fuels, primarily oil and gas. Most of these freight flows were on pipelines linking Canada and the American Midwest.
U.S.-Mexico (both directions)
Of freight by vessel, $3.4 billion, or 57.0 percent were mineral fuels, primarily oil and gas shipments between Gulf of Mexico ports in the U.S. and Mexico – with over half of those shipments going through Texas ports.
Reporting Notes
Data in this release are not seasonally adjusted and are not adjusted for inflation. For previous statistical releases and summary tables, see TransBorder Releases. See TransBorder Freight Data for data from previous months, and for additional state, port, and commodity data. BTS has scheduled the release of April TransBorder numbers for June 26.