A measure of how much freight is moved by the nation’s for-hire transportation industry hit a record high in September with a 0.3% increase from the month before, according to a new U.S. Transportation Department report.

The Freight Transportation Services Index registered 121.5, marking the third consecutive monthly gain, and 28.5% above the April 2009 low during the most recent recession. Year to date freight shipments measured by the index were up 2.1% in September compared to the end of 2013.

The August index was revised upward to 121.2 from 120.9 last month while there were smaller upward revisions for each of the previous months in 2014.

All freight modes grew in September except rail carloads, which were unchanged. During the month, several other indicators of related parts of the economy that often impact transportation increased, according to the report. In particular, industrial production grew 1% after several months of slow or negative growth while manufacturers’ shipments and inventories both increased.

The third quarter also represented a return to growth after two quarters of modest quarterly declines. The quarterly growth of 2.3% was the most rapid since the fourth quarter of 2011.

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