Detroit and Laredo were Top 2006 Ports for Trade by Truck

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Contact BTS 25-07 Dave Smallen 202-366-5568

Wednesday, May 16, 2007 - Detroit on the Canadian border and Laredo, TX, on the Mexican border were the top ports for the value of trade moved by truck in 2006, according to a new special report on North American freight transportation from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS).

BTS, a part of the U.S. Department of Transportation's Research and Innovative Technology Administration, reported that Detroit was the gateway for $64 billion in merchandise carried by truck to Canada and $51 billion from Canada .  The merchandise transported through Detroit in 2006 was almost double the value of the goods that passed through Buffalo-Niagara Falls, NY, the next-ranking port on the Canadian border.  Port Huron, MI, was the third-ranking port.

On the Mexican border, $34 billion in merchandise was exported and $44 billion was imported through Laredo by truck, almost double the value of the goods that passed through El Paso, TX, the next-ranking port on the Mexican border.  Otay Mesa, CA, was the third-ranking port.

Other findings of the BTS report:

• The leading ports handle the majority of the transborder freight and serve as national gateways.  In 2006, the top 10 ports on the northern border handled 92 percent of the truck freight crossing to and from Canada .  The top 10 ports on the southern border handled 97 percent of the truck freight crossing to and from Mexico .
• Trucks remain the dominant mode for transporting U.S.-North American freight, carrying $534 billion, or 62 percent, of the total value in 2006.
• Ranked by value, motor vehicles and parts was the leading commodity group transported by all modes between the United States and our NAFTA partners in 2006.

The special report on North American freight transportation provides analysis of recent activity and trends in U.S. merchandise trade with Canada and Mexico from a transportation perspective.  It is available at http://www.bts.gov/publications/bts_special_report/2007_05/   The report uses BTS Transborder Freight Data, released monthly on the BTS website at http://www.bts.gov/transborder/  For press releases on monthly TransBorder data, see http://www.bts.gov/press_releases/north_american_surface_freight_data.html.