NAFTA Freight Traffic Climbing

U.S. truck freight operating under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) rose 10.2 percent in January compared with the same month a year ago, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics or BTS. Trucks hauled $60.6 billion in freight in January.

North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)

Slightly more freight value — $33.3 billion compared with $$27.1 billion — was moved across the Mexican border than the Canadian border. And compared to last year, U.S.-Mexico truck freight rose 13.6 percent while Canadian freight rose 6.2 percent.

Texas saw the most freight coming through its ports, $24.8 billion in truck freight — 14.3 percent more than last year — while Michigan followed with $13.3 billion. New York saw $7.4 billion, up 3.2 percent over 2017.

Rail moved freight valued at $13.3 billion, up 0.6 percent over January 2017, and moved more freight across the Canadian border ($7.5 billion), than it did across the Mexican border ($5.8 billion).

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Texas again saw the highest value of rail freight ($5.2 billion), but that was down 3.3 percent from 2017, BTS reported. Not surprisingly, Laredo, Texas, was the busiest border crossing for rail and truck freight.

The top freight designation for trucks was computers and parts, followed by electrical machinery, motor vehicles and parts, plastics and measuring and testing instruments. Rail, on the other hand, carried more motor vehicles and parts than any other product designation.

All modes of transport were up 9.9 percent for January of this year compared with January 2017, while truck was up 10.2 percent month-over-month and rail was up 0.6.