WASHINGTON — Three busy Ontario-U.S. land border crossings rank in the top 10 leading international freight transportation gateways south of the border.

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics released "America’s Freight Transportation Gateways 2009," a data profile of the nation’s leading international freight transportation gateways in 2008 and trends in movement of goods through these seaports, airports and land border crossings since 1990.

U.S. freight gateways handled more than $3.4 trillion (in current dollars) of international merchandise trade in 2008, an increase of 9 percent from 2007. The highlights the top 25 freight gateways, which are led by the Los Angeles seaport.

The Detroit-Windsor, Ont. border was the busiest land border gateway by value for imports and exports; and the fifth leading gateway when compared with all U.S. land, air, and sea freight gateways.

In 2008, merchandise trade passing through Detroit ($120 billion) accounted for 15 percent of the value of U.S. total land trade and 18 percent of all volume exports by land and 12 percent of imports.

Trucking, of course, was by far the most heavily used mode of transportation for freight passing through Detroit, accounting for 84 percent of the value ($101 billion) of total land trade in 2008, which is down from 91 percent in 2000. Rail accounted for 15 percent in 2008, up from 9 percent in 2000.

By weight, trucking also accounted for the largest share of land imports tonnage.

Detroit is an international gateway that serves almost every state, states the report. About 74 percent of the value of truck freight passing through Detroit originated or terminated outside Michigan.

The top three states served by Detroit’s land transportation facilities were Michigan, Ohio, and California, accounting for 48 percent of the merchandise trade transported through the Great Lakes State.  

US-bound truck crossings via Detroit, 1994-2008

The tunnel and Ambassador Bridge, handled more than 1.5 million incoming truck crossings in 2008, down 15 percent from the year before.

The reports states that the recent economic downturn, the decline in production by the Big Three automakers and the overall slowdown in heavy manufacturing activities are likely to continue to influence freight traffic at Detroit’s land facilities and in the freight transportation corridors they serve.

Port Huron was the third busiest land border gateway (after Lardeo, Texas-Mexico). Its land ports were the ninth leading commercial crossing when compared with all U.S. gateways.

Merchandise trade passing through Port Huron ($81 billion) accounted for 10 percent of the value of U.S. total land trade last year.

Since 2000, though, trucking’s share of land trade crossing through Port Huron has stayed relatively flat, averaging between 52 and 57 percent, in part because of increases in pipeline shipments, which more than quadrupled in value.

The Buffalo-Niagara Falls border, the fourth busiest land border gateway, rounded out the top 10 for all types of ports.

Just over $81 billion worth of goods went across this point, accounting for nearly 10 percent of the value of U.S. total land trade.

Like Port Huron, trucking’s share of the value of goods passing through Buffalo-Niagara Falls has remained relatively steady since 2000, hovering between 75 and 79 percent. In 2008, rail carried about $11 billion of land freight, accounting for 14 percent of the value of the gateway’s land trade, down from 21 percent in 2000.

The top three states served by land transportation facilities at this gateway were New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio.