The Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) reported this week that its Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI) increased 0.4 percent from September to October.
According to BTS officials, the Freight TSI measures the month-to-month changes in freight shipments in ton-miles, which are then combined into one index. The index measures the output of the for-hire freight transportation industry and consists of data from for-hire trucking, rail, inland waterways, pipelines and air freight.
The October Freight TSI, at 123.2, was slightly behind the all-time high of 123.5 reached in November 2014 and is 0.5 percent ahead of September’s 122.7.
BTS said the October Freight TSI is up 30.1 percent compared to the recent low of 94.7 recorded in April 2009.
And BTS said that the gain in the Freight TSI “was narrower in terms of modes than it has been in many previous months – trucking, waterborne and pipeline showed gains, while rail carload, rail intermodal and air freight decreased. Similarly, the increase took place against a background of mixed indicators for the general economy – personal income increased, employment increased substantially, while housing starts, the Federal Reserve Board Industrial Production index and the ISM Manufacturing Index declined, indicating slower growth.”
Freight shipments measured by the index were up 0.5 percent in October compared to the end of 2014, according to BTS.