Study reveals America’s freight system threatened by ‘host of dangers’

The U.S. freight transportation system moves about $40 billion worth of goods each day, with delays and uncertainty in the performance of the system translating into higher prices for consumers and reduced productivity, according to the study.
"Improvements to infrastructure are important, but it's also critical to ensure that the existing infrastructure is used efficiently," senior principal researcher with RAND Richard Hillestad said.
Despite the global financial crisis, experts continue to estimate that there will be increased demand for freight transportation in the future, even as the capacity of the America’s highways, port and railroads are nearing their limits in key urban areas and transportation corridors.
The annual average road delay in the U.S for rush hour travellers increased from 14 hours per year in 1982 to 38 hours per year in 2005. And the Association of American Railroads predicts that by 2035, more than half of the national rail network will be operating near or above capacity, resulting in significant travel delays and limiting the ability to maintain tracks and equipment. This would also limit the opportunity to increase rail's share of freight, which could help tackle environmental concerns and road congestion.
"There's an opportunity now for the United States to develop policies and plans that will improve the flexibility and security of the freight transportation system, which is currently vulnerable to a host of dangers that could cause costly disruptions, whether from a terrorist attack or a natural disaster, such as an earthquake," Hillestad said.
"The whole functionality of freight transportation is built on reliability and speed, and those elements need to be protected."
The study concludes that there are four freight transportation and infrastructure issues that are particularly critical to address:
.Increasing the capacity of national and international freight systems through a combination of operational improvements and selected infrastructure enhancement
.Creating an adaptable, less-vulnerable and more-resilient freight transportation system
.Addressing the energy and environmental issues associated with freight transportation
.Making the case for public and private investment in supply-chain infrastructure and establishing sustainable priorities for funding
Suggested strategies for increasing America’s freight transportation capacity include regulations, pricing, technology, improved operating practices and selective infrastructure investments. Examples of these improvements include adopting congestion pricing to promote more highway transportation during non-peak hours, encouraging more goods to be shipped by rail instead of truck and expanding some port operations to run 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
To make the system more flexible and less vulnerable to disruption, the report recommends that responsible agencies conduct system-level modelling of the freight transportation system to determine where bottlenecks occur and to understand its vulnerabilities. Encouraging shippers to use alternative ports instead of relying on just the largest would also reduce strain on the system.
Transportation accounts for 25 percent of the nation's hydrocarbon fuel use; of that amount, about 25 percent is freight transportation. Methods to reduce pollution include increasing the operational efficiency of freight transportation and direct mitigation measures such as cleaner fuel, better engines and more-aerodynamic vehicles.
Finally, the report suggests that a greater effort needs to be focused on developing sustainable priorities for public investment in the country’s freight transportation system.