Long Haul Freight Movement

INRIX has the nation’s largest data warehouse of sampled vehicle speeds, including the most extensive data related specifically to freight activity. In this Annual Scorecard, the subset of GPS vehicle probe data from 2010 attributed to vehicles focused on long haul freight movement has been separated from the full archive to present a timely picture on national freight movement via highways. While the distribution of samples may not precisely match the movement of all long haul vehicles nationwide, with INRIX’s billions of data points and sources nationwide, this is the most extensive, consistent, and current analysis available on national freight activity.

The relative density of measured freight activity on the nation’s major roads is shown in Figure 14. The figure illustrates that the nation’s truck freight network is highly interconnected, with some of its most important links – I-44 through Missouri, I-40 through Arkansas and I-70 through Indiana for example – located in places that aren’t immediately obvious (except to fleets and people traveling those roads). Several organizations, including AASHTO15 and two important national policy panels16, have recently called for policies and programs elevating freight transportation as a strategic national transportation issue. In July 2010, Senator’s Lautenberg, Murray, and Cantwell introduced the FREIGHT Act of 2010 specifically to establish and better coordinate national freight transportation policy.

Which Cities Have the Most Long Haul Freight?

By focusing on road segments in the nation’s largest 100 markets, the amount of freight moving through each region can be assessed and compared. In 2010, 45% of the freight vehicle data volume analyzed was located in these top 100 markets—roughly in proportion to the total road miles analyzed located in these regions (43%). Thus, an important conclusion from the data is that long haul freight activity is proportional in urban and inter-urban areas; it is not a rural or urban issue—it affects both roughly the same. Long-haul freight is an Urban AND Rural issue— in addition to a national economic competitiveness issue.

Of course, not all regions have the same level of freight activity. Table 16 ranks the 100 largest CBSAs based on “activity/mile” which adjusts the total amount of freight activity measured in a region by the total road mileage analyzed in the region. The Table shows the relative level of activity by comparing each region to the average activity per mile (2.00 means the region had twice the per mile long haul freight activity measured than average). The Table also includes the ranking of each region in terms of the overall activity measured, irrespective of the number of miles.

In absolute terms, larger cities like Chicago and Dallas/Ft. Worth rank high. In terms of relative activity, the top rankings are dominated by areas where multiple heavily used interstates intersect—“crossroads cities.” Topping the list are Chattanooga, where I-75 and I-24 meet, and Indianapolis, where four different interstate highways meet, including I-70 and I-65. How freight moves through these crossroads cities is critically important to the performance freight movement overall.

What States have the Most Long Haul Freight?

New to this year’s report is an analysis of freight activity by state. Table 17 lists each state in order of freight activity per mile. Unsurprisingly, states with key corridors and one or more crossroads cities, such as Tennessee, Indiana and Georgia, are at the top of the list. Additionally, states with important corridors such as Nebraska (I-80) and Arkansas (I-40) rank in the top five as well. These top five have on average twice the relative long haul freight activity as compared to the average state. Texas ranks first with the most overall long haul freight activity, with over 8% of the nationwide total. California is second (6%), and Illinois is third (just under 6%). Perhaps the most surprising rank is Arizona up at 11th—demonstrating the importance of the I-10 and I-40 corridors in the west.