8.0 CONCLUSIONS

The provisional estimates of commodity movements between FAF zone origins and destinations provide annual updates to FAF database. These estimates are derived from public domain data sources. This report describes the data sources and the methodology used in developing the estimates for each mode of freight movement.

The quality of the provisional estimates is determined primarily by the data from the various sources used. No revisions to the provisional estimates are expected.  However, annual estimates will address any issues arising from the previous year’s estimates. The provisional estimates are not intended to compete with private industry data sources. Rather the provisional estimates provide a single comprehensive source of data on all modes of freight movement for use in understanding trends and analyses related to economic development, transportation planning, and transportation infrastructure performance.