Investing in America

Coffee beans, cement and cell phones – what do these products have in common? For most Americans, seemingly little. Yet together with virtually every good and commodity bought and sold today, they are united by a network that operates behind the scenes to transport them to marketplaces around the world. At the center of this network are America’s freight railroads – the hidden hero that keeps our economy moving safely, affordably and on time.

Most people inherently understand that freight railroads serve industrial and resource-based sectors of our economy though few may realize businesses and consumers increasingly depend upon the transport of intermodal freight – shipping containers and truck trailers traveling by rail. The products carried by intermodal are as diverse as they are numerous – from carrots grown in Central California to laptops assembled in Japan. Whether a product is destined for an electronics store in Bethesda or a grocery store in Beijing, its journey is not complete without traveling onboard American freight rail. In 2013, the volume of intermodal freight rail reached a record high of 12.8 million units, and it is already clear that 2014 will break that record.

To meet the nation’s growing demand for a variety of goods and materials, freight railroads are spending $25 billion annually – of their own money, not taxpayer money – to maintain and modernize infrastructure and equipment. These investments are building new intermodal terminals to facilitate the transfer of shipping containers and trailers between rail and truck, expanding tunnels so that trains can “doublestack” shipping containers and carry more goods to market on a single train, and adding track capacity and advanced signaling systems to accommodate faster, more frequent trains on the rail network.

See how railroads spend their money.

The private investments made by America’s freight railroads have far-reaching benefits. Transporting freight by rail helps to reduce carbon emissions, because railroads are four times more fuel efficient than trucks. In fact, moving freight by rail instead of truck reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 75 percent. Freight rail is also helping to ease congestion on America’s highways, because a single train can replace several hundred trucks on our roads. Finally, a modern and efficient freight rail system is easing the burden on taxpayers, because unlike trucks, barges and airlines, America’s freight railroads operate almost exclusively on infrastructure they build, maintain and pay for themselves.

Perhaps most importantly, the investments made by freight railroads are helping to keep costs low for businesses and prices low for consumers. In fact, the average cost of shipping by freight rail is 42 percent lower than it was in 1981 – allowing close to twice as much freight to be shipped to market for about the same price paid more than 30 years ago.

In the coming years, the demands on America’s transportation networks are only expected to grow. According to estimates from the Federal Highway Administration, overall freight demand will increase 45 percent by the year 2040. In order to meet this growing demand, America’s freight railroads are making investments today that will keep America’s economy moving – now and for decades to come.

Watch how freight rail delivers for the American economy.