Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI) Unchanged in December from November

BTS 08-10
Dave Smallen
202-366-5568

Thursday, February 18, 2010 - The Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI) was unchanged in December from its November level, after one monthly increase, the U.S. Department of Transportations Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) reported today (Table 1).

BTS, a part of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration, reported that though the Freight TSI declined 4.1 percent during 2009 (Table 3) the index increased 2.9 percent over the last seven months of the year, beginning in June (Table 2). For additional historical data, go to http://www.bts.gov/xml/tsi/src/index.xml

The Freight TSI measures the month-to-month changes in freight shipments in ton-miles, which are then combined into one index. The index measures the output of the for-hire freight transportation industry and consists of data from for-hire trucking, rail, inland waterways, pipelines and air freight.

The December Freight TSI of 96.2 is a 2.9 percent increase from the recent low of 93.5 reached in May. In May, the index was at its lowest level since June 1997. The Freight TSI is down 14.8 percent from its historic peak of 112.9 reached in May 2006.

With the 4.1 percent decline in 2009 following an 8.7 percent decline in 2008, the Freight TSI has declined 12.4 percent in two years (Table 3).

The December Freight TSI of 96.2 is the lowest for December since December 1996 when it was 89.1. The 4.1 percent decline in the Freight TSI from December 2008 to December 2009 was the fourth largest annual decline in the 20 years for which the TSI is calculated. It was the third largest decline in the past decade, exceeded by declines in 2000 and 2008 (Table 4).

The freight index is also down 13.2 percent in the five years from December 2004. The index is down 8.4 percent in the 10 years from December 1999 (Table 5).

The TSI is a seasonally adjusted index that measures changes from the monthly average of the base year of 2000. It includes historic data from 1990 to the present. Release of the January index is scheduled for March 10.

For a video explanation of the TSI, see Overview of the Transportation Services Index. For a BTS report explaining the TSI, Transportation Services Index and the Economy is available for download in the BTS bookstore.

Transportation Services Index for Passengers

The TSI for passengers fell 0.5 percent in December from its November level (Table 6). The Passenger TSI December 2009 level of 108.2 was 2.3 percent below the December 2008 level, for the second consecutive December-to-December decrease, and marking the first consecutive annual decreases in the 20-year history of the TSI (Table 7). Despite recent declines, the index is up 1.5 percent in five years and 13.7 percent in 10 years (Table 5).

The passenger TSI measures the month-to-month changes in travel conducted in the for-hire passenger transportation sector. The seasonally adjusted index consists of data from air, local transit and intercity rail.

Combined Freight and Passenger Index

The combined freight and passenger TSI fell 0.1 percent in December from its November level (Table 8). The combined TSI December 2009 level of 98.8 was 3.7 percent lower than the December 2008 level, leaving the index at its lowest December level since 2001 and at the same level as December 2000 (Table 9). The combined index is down 9.8 percent in five years and down 2.9 percent in 10 years (Table 5).

The combined TSI merges the freight and passenger indexes into a single index.

4th Quarter Changes

The Freight TSI rose 0.5 percent in the fourth quarter, the second consecutive quarterly increase (Table 10) after five consecutive quarterly declines that started from the second quarter of 2008. The Passenger TSI fell 1.9 percent in the fourth quarter, falling after two consecutive quarterly increases (Table 11). The combined TSI fell 0.1 percent in the fourth quarter, declining after one quarterly increase (Table 12).

More on TSI

NOTE: TSI numbers for August (Freight, Passenger and Combined) were revised because of revisions in the output data of the component transportation services. The August Freight TSI is 96.5, revised from the 96.2 reported in last months release. The August Passenger TSI is 110.6, revised from 111.2. The August Combined TSI is 99.6, revised from 99.5. The TSI for September, October, November and December are preliminary.

TSI revision policy: TSI is updated monthly with the latest four months index numbers considered preliminary. Each month BTS releases the latest preliminary TSI, and replaces the oldest preliminary TSI with a revised TSI. More information about the monthly revision policy, is available at http://www.bts.gov/xml/tsi/src/index.xml

More information about the comprehensive revision conducted with the July release is provided under 2009 Comprehensive Revision at http://www.bts.gov/xml/tsi/src/index.xml.