Freight Facts and Figures 2013
Tables 2-5 and 2-5M. Hazardous Materials Shipments by Transportation Mode: 2007
As measured by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), the Commodity Flow Survey indicates that trucks moved more than one-half of all hazardous materials shipped from within the United States. However, truck ton-miles of hazardous materials shipments accounted for a much smaller share, about one-third of all ton-miles, because such shipments travel relatively short distances. By contrast, rail accounted for only six percent of hazardous materials shipments by weight but nearly 29 percent of ton-miles.
Table 2-5 (standard units)
| Transportation mode | Value |
Tons | Ton miles1 | Miles | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $ Billions | Percent | Millions | Percent | Billions | Percent | Average distance per shipment | |
| All modes, total | 1,448 | 100.0 | 2,231 | 100.0 | 323 | 100.0 | 96 |
| Single modes, total | 1,371 | 94.6 | 2,112 | 94.6 | 279 | 86.3 | 65 |
| Truck2 | 837 | 57.8 | 1,203 | 53.9 | 104 | 32.2 | 59 |
| For-hire | 359 | 24.8 | 495 | 22.2 | 63 | 19.6 | 214 |
| Private | 478 | 33.0 | 708 | 31.7 | 41 | 12.6 | 32 |
| Rail | 69 | 4.8 | 130 | 5.8 | 92 | 28.5 | 578 |
| Water | 69 | 4.8 | 150 | 6.7 | 37 | 11.5 | 383 |
| Air | 2 | 0.1 | S | S | S | S | 1,095 |
| Pipeline3 | 393 | 27.2 | 629 | 28.2 | S | S | S |
| Multiple modes, total | 71 | 4.9 | 111 | 5.0 | 43 | 13.3 | 834 |
| Parcel, U.S. Postal Service, or Courier | 8 | 0.5 | <1 | <0.1 | <1 | <0.1 | 836 |
| Other multiple modes | 28 | 1.9 | 57 | 2.5 | 17 | 5.3 | 233 |
| Unknown and other modes, total | 7 | 0.5 | 8 | 0.4 | 1 | 0.5 | 58 |
Key: S = data are not published because of high sampling variability or other reasons.
1Ton-miles estimates are based on estimated distances traveled along a modeled transportation network.
2Truck as a single mode includes shipments that went by private truck only, for-hire truck only, or a combination of both.
3Excludes crude oil shipments.
Note:
Value-of-shipment estimates are reported in $ 2007 dollars. Numbers and percents may not add to totals due to rounding.
Source:
U.S. Department of Transportation, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Bureau of Transportation Statistics and U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, 2007 Commodity Flow Survey, Hazardous Materials (Washington, DC: July 2010), table 1a, available at www.bts.gov/publications/commodity_flow_survey/ as of December 20, 2013.
Table 2-5M (metric units)
| Transportation mode | Value |
Metric Tonnes | Tonne kilometers1 | Kilometers | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $ Billion | Percent | Millions | Percent | Billions | Percent | Average distance per shipment | |
| All modes, total | 1,448 | 100.0 | 2,024 | 100.0 | 472 | 100.0 | 154 |
| Single modes, total | 1,371 | 94.6 | 1,916 | 94.6 | 408 | 86.3 | 105 |
| Truck2 | 837 | 57.8 | 1091 | 53.9 | 152 | 32.2 | 95 |
| For-hire | 359 | 24.8 | 449 | 22.2 | 92 | 19.6 | 344 |
| Private | 478 | 33.0 | 642 | 31.7 | 59 | 12.6 | 51 |
| Rail | 69 | 4.8 | 118 | 5.8 | 135 | 28.5 | 930 |
| Water | 69 | 4.8 | 136 | 6.7 | 54 | 11.5 | 616 |
| Air | 2 | 0.1 | S | S | S | S | 1,762 |
| Pipeline3 | 393 | 27.2 | 571 | 28.2 | S | S | S |
| Multiple modes, total | 71 | 4.9 | 101 | 5.0 | 63 | 13.3 | 1,342 |
| Parcel, U.S. Postal Service, or courier | 8 | 0.5 | <1 | <0.1 | <1 | <0.1 | 1,345 |
| Other multiple modes | 28 | 1.9 | 51 | 2.5 | 25 | 5.3 | 375 |
| Unknown and other modes, total | 7 | 0.5 | 8 | 0.4 | 2 | 0.5 | 93 |
Key: S = data are not published because of high sampling variability or other reasons.
1Tonne-kilometer estimates are based on estimated distances traveled along a modeled transportation network.
2Truck as a single mode includes shipments that went by private truck only, for-hire truck only, or a combination of both.
3Excludes crude oil shipments.
Notes:
1 metric tonne = 1.1023 short tons; 1 tonne kilometer = 0.6849 ton miles. Value-of-shipment estimates are reported in $ 2007 dollars. Numbers and percents may not add to totals due to rounding.
Source:
U.S. Department of Transportation, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Bureau of Transportation Statistics and U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, 2007 Commodity Flow Survey, Hazardous Materials (Washington, DC: July 2010), table 1a, available at www.bts.gov/publications/commodity_flow_survey/ as of August 5, 2012.
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