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News
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Growing
Freight
Demands
Reaching Transportation Crisis
Posted 9 July
2010
In 10 years, an
additional 1.8 million trucks will be on the road; in 20 years, for
every two trucks today, another one will be added. Already bottlenecks
on major highways are encountered every day by truckers, adding
millions of dollars to the cost of food, goods and manufacturing
equipment for American consumers. As a result, according to a new
report released today, the transportation system that supports the
movement of freight across America is facing a crisis.
At joint news conferences today in Des Moines, Iowa; Memphis, Tenn.;
and Harrisburg, Pa., the American Association of State Highway and
Transportation Officials (AASHTO) released “Unlocking Freight,” an
analysis of America’s freight system that finds our highways,
railroads, ports, waterways, and airports require investments well
beyond current levels to maintain – much less improve – their
performance. The report identifies key projects in 30 states that would
improve freight delivery and dependability, and offers a three-point
plan to address what is needed to relieve freight congestion, generate
jobs and improve productivity.
AASHTO President and Mississippi Department of Transportation (DOT)
Executive Director Larry L. “Butch” Brown said, “The simple fact is: no
transportation, no economy. They are inseparable. We must invest to
maintain and strengthen the American ‘transconomy.’”
At the annual meeting of the Mississippi Valley Conference of State
Highway and Transportation Officials (MVC) in Des Moines, Brown said,
“Congress must invest in all transportation modes, from waterways to
roads and rails, to get us where we need to be as a competitive nation.
Millions of jobs and our nation’s long-term economic health depend on
it.”
Despite more long-distance freight being moved by intermodal rail, the
report finds that trucks will still carry 74 percent of the load. On
average today, 10,500 trucks a day travel some segments of the
Interstate Highway System. By 2035, this will increase to 22,700
trucks on these portions, with the most heavily used segments seeing
upwards of 50,000 trucks a day. Between 1980 and 2006, traffic on the
Interstate Highway System increased by 150 percent, yet interstate
capacity increased by only 15 percent. The report identifies the 1,000
miles of most heavily traveled highways used by trucks.
In a related news conference releasing the report in Pennsylvania,
Governor Edward Rendell stood at the Norfolk Southern Intermodal
Facility in Harrisburg and said, “This report outlines what’s at stake
if we fail to invest to meet the growing demands on our transportation
infrastructure. This includes the roads, rails and seaports we need to
move raw materials and goods to market, and keep our economy globally
competitive.”
“As the gateway to the Northeast, Pennsylvania gets more than our share
of truck traffic,” Rendell said. “In fact, Pennsylvania is one of six
states – along with Arkansas, California, Georgia, Tennessee, and Texas
– that collectively account for 88 percent of the most heavily used
truck routes.”
“It’s unfortunate that many of the 35 million travelers who hit the
road for the Fourth of July holiday this past weekend spent hours of
their vacation time stuck in traffic,” said John Horsley AASHTO’s
executive director. “Ten thousand commercial trucks face that kind of
gridlock everyday.”
MVC President and Iowa DOT Director Nancy Richardson said at the Iowa
news conference that her state’s agricultural and manufacturing supply
chain is crucial to the economic recovery, stability and growth of Iowa
and the nation. She said, “States need greater investment and sound
federal transportation polices to allow them to expand capacity when
and where necessary.”
MVC Vice President and Minnesota DOT Commissioner Thomas Sorel said,
“The Port of Duluth-Superior is an example of hundreds of
freight-related projects in desperate need of greater investment. It’s
one of the largest inland seaports in the world, bringing in iron ore
and coal docks, grain elevators and specialized cargo facilities lining
the industrial waterfronts of Duluth, Minnesota, and Superior,
Wisconsin. Yet the infrastructure is currently deficient in terms of
capacity, physical condition and safety.”
The nation's multimodal freight transportation system directly affects
economic development, current and future jobs, and the quality of life
in our communities,” said Ohio DOT Director Jolene M. Molitoris, MVC
incoming vice president. “Today, the nation's freight transportation
system supports more than 10 million jobs, from couriers, truckers,
laborers, shippers, railroad conductors, and mechanics to postal
carriers, warehouse operators and stock clerks. Now, think about how
many more jobs will be added as the industry grows over time and you
begin to see yet another reason why this study is so important.”
In Memphis, Tennessee DOT Commissioner Gerald Nicely and Arkansas State
Highway and Transportation Department Director Dan Flowers co-hosted a
news conference, along with other state and local officials, and
industry and business leaders. Commissioner Nicely said, “To
accommodate this predicted growth in freight movement, we need to think
nationally and regionally, and on a multimodal level. Central to this
effort should be the creation of a National Multimodal Freight Plan to
ensure that transportation investments are coordinated and made where
most needed. By linking trucks, rail, waterway transport, and aviation,
freight can be moved more efficiently throughout the nation.”
Each year, 147 million tons of freight passes through Tennessee by way
of trucks, rail cars and barges. Nearly half of Tennessee’s gross
domestic product comes from the movement of goods, and more than half
of the statewide employment is in goods-dependent industries. The
segment of Interstate 40 through Tennessee and Arkansas alone accounts
for nearly one-third of the nation’s busiest truck miles.
According to Nicely, a current strain on the movement of freight in the
tri-state region is the lack of vehicular and rail crossings along the
Mississippi River. Tennessee, Mississippi and Arkansas are currently
working to develop a third Mississippi River bridge crossing – dubbed
the Southern Gateway Project. Environmental studies on the project are
now underway and include consideration of a multiuse bridge that would
include both vehicle and rail access.
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