USA Banner

Official US Government Icon

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure Site Icon

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

U.S. Department of Transportation U.S. Department of Transportation Icon United States Department of Transportation United States Department of Transportation

North American Transborder Freight up 3.5% in December 2022 from December 2021

Tuesday, February 21, 2023

BTS 10-23

 

December 2022 Transborder Infographic

*This infographic has been corrected to show total North American Freight for December 2022 is $121.7 billion.

*Transborder freight is measured by value and is not adjusted for seasonal variation or inflation.

The statistics in this release may not reflect changes in tonnage moved.

 

Total Transborder Freight by Border in December 2022, Compared to December 2021:
Transborder freight between the U.S. and North American countries (Canada and Mexico) in December 2022:

  • Total transborder freight: $121.7 billion of transborder freight moved by all modes of transportation, up 3.5% compared to December 2021
  • Freight between the U.S. and Canada totaled $60.7 billion, up 0.2% from December 2021
  • Freight between the U.S. and Mexico totaled $61.0 billion, up 7.0% from December 2021
  • Trucks moved $73.9 billion of freight, up 5.8% compared to December 2021
  • Railways moved $16.0 billion of freight, down 2.1% compared to December 2021
  • Pipelines moved $10.2 billion of freight, down 4.1% compared to December 2021
  • Vessels moved $10.3 billion of freight, up 8.9% compared to December 2021
  • Air moved $5.2 billion of freight, down 0.4% compared to December 2021

 Bar chart showing North America Freight by mode for December 2021 and December 2022

 

In December 2022, the Keystone pipeline from Canada was temporarily shut down due to an oil spill in Washington County, Kansas after bending stress and a weld flaw. 3  Energy suppliers responded by shifting to vessels to compensate for the pipeline capacity shortfall.

Total Transborder Freight by Border and Mode:

U.S.-Canada (both directions)
(Dollars in Billions)
Truck:                 $31.7 
Pipeline:             $9.2
Rail:                     $8.7 
Vessel:                $3.3     
Air:                      $3.3    		 U.S.-Mexico (both directions)
(Dollars in Billions)
Truck:            $42.1 
Rail:                $7.3 
Vessel:            $7.0     
Air:                  $1.8 
Pipeline:         $1.0     

 

The dollar value of oil increased by 6.6% in December 2022 compared to December 2021, which contributed to year-over-year increases in the value of freight moved by vessel with Canada and Mexico. (1)(2) Port of Houston, Arthur, and Texas City are the top water port connections for U.S. energy flows with Mexico.

U.S.-Canada Trade Breakdown

Top three truck ports
Detroit, MI                $9.7 billion 
Port Huron, MI          $5.2 billion
Buffalo, NY               $5.0 billion

Top three truck commodities
Computers/parts          $5.3 billion 
Vehicles/parts              $4.8 billion
Electrical machinery    $2.3 billion 

Top three rail ports
Detroit, MI             $2.4 billion
Port Huron, MI     $2.2 billion
Int’l Falls, MN       $1.2 billion


Top three rail commodities
Vehicles/part           $3.2 billion 
Mineral fuel            $0.8 billion
Fertilizers                $0.5 billion 
 

U.S.-Mexico Trade Breakdown

Top three truck ports
Laredo, TX                   $19.7 billion 
El Paso-Ysleta, TX         $5.8 billion
Otay Mesa, CA               $4.3 billion

Top three truck commodities
Computers/parts           $9.4 billion
Electrical machinery      $9.2 billion 
Vehicles/parts                 $5.9 billion

Top three rail ports
Laredo, TX                    $3.9 billion 
Eagle Pass, TX              $2.0 billion
El Paso, TX                    $0.6 billion


Top three rail commodities
Vehicles/parts             $3.6 billion
Computers/part          $0.6 billion
Cereals                          $0.4 billion
 

Reporting Notes

Data in this Bureau of Transportation Statistics 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 additional state, port, and commodity data. BTS has scheduled the next release of transborder numbers for March 22, 2023.
 

1 Changes are due to fluctuations in the price of oil, volume, and weight.
2 WTI Spot Price: https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=pet&s=rwtc&f=m 
3 https://www.tcenergy.com/incident/milepost-14-incident