Summary

In 1990 the nation's highways carried 32 percent more freight than in 1980 and 78 percent more than in 1970. Although trucking provides flexible, reliable, and economical service, the growth of this industry has been accompanied by concerns about safety, traffic congestion, pollution, and highway deterioration. Highways around cities like Chicago and Los Angeles are carrying more than 15,000 tractor-trailers a day. This report examines the status and potential benefits of intermodal transportation, in which loaded containers or trailers are transferred intact from truck to rail and back to truck. Specifically, GAO (1) discusses recent trends in intermodal rail transportation, (2) assesses the prospects for more intermodal cooperation between the rail and trucking industries, (3) identifies problems that undercut the effectiveness and benefits of intermodal transportation, and (4) considers federal initiatives that might encourage intermodal cooperation.

GAO found that: (1) previous problems with cargo damage were significantly reduced by improved track and new types of intermodal railcars; (2) large truckload companies have recently seen advantages in using intermodal service, such as cost savings on long hauls, handling more volume with existing tractor and driver fleets, and reducing driver turnover; (3) truck traffic to and from intermodal terminals is adding to urban congestion in some major metropolitan areas; (4) intermodal service has had limited impact on highway traffic in the eastern United States because cities are close to each other; (5) the Department of Transportation's (DOT) Office of Intermodalism could play a useful role in helping industry and local government officials to agree on plans and funding to solve intermodal transportation problems in major urban areas; (6) The Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA) permits greater flexibility in using trust funds and emphasizes the need for intermodal planning in solving transportation problems; and (7) none of the ISTEA major funding sections specifically authorize the use of trust funds for intermodal freight facilities.