Advancing state freight plans with a cutting edge commodity flow database

When Rhode Island requested proposals to help conduct analyses for their state freight plan, WSP responded, wanting to bring something special to the table. Though the state might be smaller in geographic size, its traffic networks, including the I-95 highway, are heavily traversed and have a significant impact on freight movement across the U.S. That’s why WSP knew that Rhode Island needed to capture the most accurate, up-to-date commodity flow data to understand exactly how their road networks were being used to facilitate goods movement.

The COVID-19 pandemic led to significant changes in freight movement, from the restructuring of supply chains to shifts in retail and consumer behavior. In 2022, Rhode Island was interested in developing the most accurate view of how freight moves through its highways, accounting for the impacts of the pandemic.

To address this need, WSP brought in S&P Global, the creators of the commodity flow tracking data and forecasting tool Transearch. While the Transearch database represents the gold standard in commodity flow information, the latest version available at the time only included pre-pandemic data. Bringing in Altitude by Geotab data of commercial trucking in 2021 and 2022 allowed S&P Global to update its Transearch database and develop the first-in-the-nation estimate of commodity flows post-pandemic.