Freight capacity for the 21st century.

The Transportation Research Board's Committee for the Study of Freight Capacity for the Next Century was convened to examine indications that the freight transportation sector, which has in recent decades facilitated productivity growth, instead threatens to become a hindrance to the economy. Participants in the industry have noted that in some segments investment in capacity is not growing at the same rate as traffic, shifts in freight patterns are creating bottlenecks that degrade performance, and adding capacity is becoming more expensive and difficult. The committee undertook two tasks: first, to examine the trends in the sector that have been the sources of concern in order to assess the risk that efficiency gains might not continue; and second, to propose changes in government policy that will increase capacity by enhancing the efficiency of freight transportation and promoting more rational investment. The report is presented in four chapters. Chapter 1, Introduction, presents the charge to the committee, discusses sources of concern, and outlines the report. In Chapter 2, Freight Capacity as a Government Policy Issue, the assumptions and principles that guided the committee's study and conclusions are stated. They concern definitions of freight capacity, the proper way of judging the adequacy of capacity and the performance of the freight transportation system, and delineation of the responsibilities of government related to freight capacity. In addition, immediate policy issues important for freight transportation, most of which concern pending government decisions in existing programs, are identified, and selected recent proposals for reform of government policies related to freight capacity are reviewed. In Chapter 3, Data on System Performance: Trends and Case Studies, results of the committee's assessment of three information sources to which it referred are summarized: aggregate trends data on freight traffic, infrastructure, and system performance; the case studies of freight infrastructure projects or planning activities; and the industry interviews. A review of the evidence regarding perceived trends is included in Chapter 3. The committee's conclusions and recommendations are presented in Chapter 4, Conclusions and Recommendations. An appendix is included containing recent statements on freight policy. (Author/publisher)