Today, the U.S. freight rail network is widely considered one of the most dynamic freight systems in the world. The $60 billion industry consists of 140,000 rail miles operated by seven Class I railroads [1] (railroads with operating revenues of $433.2 million or moreExternal Link), 21 regional railroads, and 510 local railroads. [2] Not only does the 140,000 mile system move more freight than any other freight rail system worldwide but it also provides 221,000 jobs [3] across the country and numerous public benefits including reductions in road congestion, highway fatalities, fuel consumption and greenhouse gasses, logistics costs, and public infrastructure maintenance costs.
The U.S. freight railroads are private organizations that are responsible for their own maintenance and improvement projects. Compared with other major industries, they invest one of the highest percentages of revenues to maintain and add capacity to their system. The majority of this investment is for upkeep to ensure a state of good repair while 15 to 20 percent of capital expenditures, on average, are used to enhance capacity. [4]
The documents Freight Railroad Background and Impact of the Staggers Rail Act of 1980 offer more information about the current state of the U.S. freight rail industry. In addition, FRA's Railroad Geographic Information SystemExternal Link provides an interactive tool that allows users to view various aspects of freight rail infrastructure in the U.S. Public datasets are available in the National Transportation Atlas DatabaseExternal Link.