Freight is critical to the economy, both locally and globally. Portland is a trade-heavy economy, strongly influenced by the intersection of two interstate highways, two railroads, two navigable rivers and major port facilities, including an international airport. Raw materials, semi-processed goods and finished products must be brought into the region, and products produced locally must make their way to market. In addition, many products travel through Portland en route elsewhere. Two-thirds of energy used for freight transportation in the U.S. is for trucking and 23 percent for air. Trucks carry 75 to 80 percent of the weight and freight value shipped in Oregon; air freight accounts for about 1 percent of the weight and 7 percent of the value of goods transported nationally. Increases in oil prices could diminish the movement of freight through the region and harm the export sector. 

Peak oil could reduce freight moved by long-haul truck and air. As a result, fewer goods would travel long distances, and the array of goods moved may be narrower. This will be particularly evident for products and materials that have relatively low value for their weight. Although air is the most fuel-intensive freight mode, the products transported by air are high value and therefore may be less affected.

Rising fuel prices will shift the comparative costs of shipping by truck, air, boat and rail, with the greater fuel efficiency of rail and boat providing a stronger competitive advantage than it does today. As a result, demand for shipping by rail and boat will increase. However, railroads are operating close to capacity now, and adding railroad capacity will be difficult, expensive and slow.

The shift to rail and boat will increase demand for intermodal connections, with implications for land use. Transportation by rail and boat is also slower than truck or air freight and will influence warehousing strategies and other business practices, which could also affect land use. The most dramatic change will be in time-sensitive goods and the widely used inventory-control strategy of “just-in-time” delivery.

Sudden changes in the price or availability of oil for transportation will have significant effects on freight transportation, with ripple effect on jobs and the economy.