Table 5-12. Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) and Particulate Matter (PM-10) Emissions by Freight Transportation Mode: 2002
Freight transportation is a major source of NOx emissions accounting for 27 percent of all NOx emissions in the United States and one-half of emissions from mobile sources. Freight transportation also accounts for about one-third of emissions of particulate matter 10 microns in diameter (PM-10) from mobile sources. Most PM-10, however, comes from agricultural fields, wildfires, and fugitive dust. Consequently, freight transportation is a minor factor when considering total PM-10 emissions.
Table in Excel format | Historical data
| Mode | NOx Emissions Tons |
NOx Emissions Percent |
NOx Emissions As percent of: All mobile sources |
NOx Emissions As percent of: All sources |
PM-10 Emissions Tons |
PM-10 Emissions Percent |
PM-10 Emissions As percent of: All mobile sources |
PM-10 Emissions As percent of: All sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavy-duty vehicles | 3,782,000 | 66.8 | 33.0 | 17.9 | 120,000 | 64.7 | 23.3 | 0.5 |
| Freight railroads | 857,200 | 15.1 | 7.5 | 4.1 | 21,300 | 11.5 | 4.1 | 0.1 |
| Marine vessels | 1,011,000 | 17.9 | 8.8 | 4.8 | 44,000 | 23.7 | 8.5 | 0.2 |
| Air freight | 8,200 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 300 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| Total | 5,658,400 | 100.0 | 49.4 | 26.8 | 185,600 | 100.0 | 36.0 | 0.8 |
U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Assessing the Effects of Freight Movement on Air Quality at the National and Regional Level, Final Report, April 2005, located at: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/freightaq/.
To view Excel files, you can use the Microsoft Excel Viewer.
