DOT Freight Transport Index Rises 4.8%
The Department of Transportation’s freight transportation services index for March rose 4.8% from a year ago, to the highest level since July 2008, DOT said Wednesday.
The freight TSI rose 1.9% from February, the department said in its monthly report.
Freight shipments have increased in 17 of the past 23 months but are down 2.1% in the five years from March 2006.
The March index rose to a reading of 108.6, which compares with the peak reading of 113.3 set in January 2005. DOT uses a reading of 100 from the year 2000 as a baseline reading.
The TSI measures the output of the for-hire freight transportation industry including trucking, rail, inland waterways, pipelines and air freight.
