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In the next 11 years, trucking’s share of total freight tonnage is projected to rise while rail’s share is forecasted to fall, according to a new American Trucking Associations (ATA) report titled “U.S. Freight Transportation Forecast to 2023.”
 
Authored by the ATA, IHS Global Insight and Martin Labbe Associates, the report shows that by 2023, trucking’s tonnage share will increase more than two percentage points from baseline year 2011 to 69.6 percent, and rail’s share will decrease 0.7 points to 15 percent.

However, intermodal tonnage likely will rise 6.2 percent annually between 2012 and 2017, and then 5.4 percent annually through 2023, the report states.

Domestic waterborne tonnage will post “very modest growth” between now and 2023, growing 1 percent annually through 2023, while domestic airfreight tonnage is expected to grow more than 4 percent annually during the period, ATA officials said in a prepared statement.

Overall, total freight tonnage is projected to increase 21 percent and total freight revenue is forecasted to climb 59 percent by 2023.