Sustainable Freight Transportation in North America
Freight transportation in North America, which is closely tied to growing trade under NAFTA, is a significant contributor of greenhouse gas emissions. Along with building-related energy improvements, the transportation sector represents one of the biggest opportunities for environmental improvements in the region.
The CEC Secretariat's latest independent study—following the 2008 publication of Green Buildings in North America—will profile the current status of freight transportation and evaluate scenarios for improving its environmental performance and recommend policy pathways to achieve those goals.
Billions of tons of goods are moved every year in complex industrial and commercial supply chains that span North America. Freight transportation within North America has experienced significant growth in the last 15 years and is inextricably linked to the regional economies and trading activity among the NAFTA partners.
8,422 millions of metric tons were moved in 2005.
Of all those goods traded in the region in 2005: 64% are moved by truck, 24% by rail, 12% by water and 0.2% by air.
While moving freight with trucks is one of the most flexible and agile modes of transportation, trucks—as the current fleet is configured&mdash-also present the biggest environmental challenge, producing more carbon emissions per ton than both rail and ships.
A single container ship can carry the same amount of freight as six intermodal trains and 1,200 trucks.
The transportation sector contributes about 26 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) in North America. Transportation sector GHG emissions by countries can be broken down as follows:
United States 27%
Canada 27%
Mexico 20%
The environmental and carbon footprints of freight transportation are directly affected by the volume of trade, the modes of transportation used, the technologies used by the different forms of transportation, as well as public policies.
At least one-quarter of transportation-related GHG emissions is related to transporting freight.
North America's freight transportation network is built around hubs and ports, including inland transportation ports, maritime ports, border entry points and major cities. When these hubs and ports reach capacity, traffic congestion can result in increased atmospheric pollution.
More than 70% of freight transportation in North American passes through Detroit and Buffalo, in the north of the United States, and Laredo, Texas, at the US-Mexico border.
North America's most important trade corridors, which run from the center of Mexico to Canada, are located in the eastern portion of North America where some 75% of the region's population is concentrated.
A study using GPS location devices installed on cargo trucks leaving Laredo revealed that 20% of that freight arrives in Detroit and 7% is delivered to the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec.
Studies in Tijuana, Mexico, show that 50% of trucks crossing the border were empty.
