BTS Releases Freight Transportation Services...

BTS Releases Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI);

Freight Index Rose 1.0% in September from August

The Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI) rose 1.0 percent in September from its August level, rising after a one month decline, the U.S. Department of Transportationâ€™s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) reported today.

BTS, a part of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration, reported that the Freight TSI has risen 5.5 percent over the last 16 months, starting in June 2009, after declining 15.3 percent in the previous 10 months beginning in August 2008. The index has increased in 12 of the last 16 months. Through the first nine months of 2010, however, the index declined 0.9 percent. For additional historic 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.Â The index measures theÂ output of the for-hire freight transportation industry andÂ consists of data from for-hire trucking, rail, inland waterways, pipelines and air freight.

The September Freight TSI of 98.7 is a 5.5 percent increase from the recent low of 93.5 reached in May 2009. In May 2009, the index was at its lowest level since June 1997. The September Freight TSI is down 12.6 percent from its historic peak of 112.9 reached in May 2006.

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BTS Releases Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI);

Freight Index Rose 1.0% in September from August

BTS, a part of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration, reported that the Freight TSI has risen 5.5 percent over the last 16 months, starting in June 2009, after declining 15.3 percent in the previous 10 months beginning in August 2008. The index has increased in 12 of the last 16 months (Table 2). Through the first nine months of 2010, however, the index declined 0.9 percent (Table 3). For additional historic data, go to http://www.bts.gov/xml/tsi/src/index.xml

Although the index rose 2.1 percent from September 2009 to September 2010, it remains below the level of every other September since 2001 when it was 97.5 (Table 4). January 2010 was the first month since July 2008 in which the Freight TSI exceeded the level of the same month of the previous year. The index has exceeded the previous yearâ€™s level every month since January but still remains below the level of recent earlier years.

The freight index is down 10.7 percent in the five years from September 2005. The index is down 0.2 percent in the 10 years from September 2000 (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.Â Release of the October index is scheduled for Dec. 8.

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

Transportation Services Index for Passengers

The TSI for passengers rose 1.0 percent in September from its August level (Table 6). The Passenger TSI September 2010 level of 112.6 was 2.0 percent above the September 2009 level after a 4.4 percent decline from September 2008 to September 2009 (Table 7). The index is up 1.8 percent in five years and up 9.6 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 rose 1.0 percent in September from its August level (Table 8). The combined TSI September 2010 level of 101.7 was 2.1 percent higher than the September 2009 level (Table 9). The combined index is down 7.7 percent in five years and up 1.6 percent in 10 years despite recent declines (Table 5). The combined TSI merges the freight and passenger indexes into a single index.

3rd Quarter Changes

The Freight TSI rose 0.8 percent in the third quarter, the fourth quarterly increase in the past five quarters (Table 10). The Passenger TSI rose 1.2 percent in the third quarter, rising for the third consecutive quarter (Table 11). The combined TSI rose 0.9 percent in the third quarter, the fourth quarterly increase in the past five quarters (Table 12).

More on TSI

Note: TSI numbers for May (Freight, Passenger and Combined) were revised because of revisions in the output data of the component transportation services. The May Freight TSI is 102.6, revised from the 97.7 reported in last monthâ€™s release. The May Passenger TSI is 111.8, revised from 111.3. The May Combined TSI is 104.6, revised from 100.7. The TSI for June, July, August and September are preliminary.

TSI revision policy: TSI is updated monthly with the latest four monthsâ€™ index numbers considered preliminary.Â Each month BTS releases the latest preliminary TSI, and replaces the oldest preliminary TSI with a revised TSI.Â 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 2009 release is provided under 2009 Comprehensive Revision at http://www.bts.gov/xml/tsi/src/index.xml

For data tables, go to www.bts.gov.

Chart titled, Transportation Services Index

BTS Releases Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI);

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