A group of transportation associations, ports, corridors, engineering firms, and state and local government authorities have teamed up to promote improving the nation's intermodal freight transportation infrastructure.

The Coalition for America's Gateways and Trade Corridors says explosive growth over the last 10 years, improvements in manufacturing processes and new technology are placing ever-greater strain on the capacity of U.S. trade corridors and gateways. Import/export freight movements, whether by truck, rail, ship or air, are a crucial link in the $7 trillion commodity flow fueling the U.S. economy today. Increasingly, these goods travel by multiple modes to arrive at their destinations. Transferring across truck, train, ship and air, intermodal transport now reaches nearly $1 trillion annually on more than 10 million loadings in the United States.
"Failure of trade gateway infrastructure to keep pace with growth in demand will hold back expansion and prosperity in coming years," said Stephen D. Hayes, executive director for the coalition. "The coalition will play a key role in developing a consensus among members of Congress for a federal funding policy that supports intermodal connectors and trade corridors."