The Commodity Flow Survey (CFS) is a joint effort by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), U.S. Department of Transportation, and the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Commerce and is conducted every 5 years. The survey is the primary source of national and state-level data on domestic freight shipments by American businesses. As a shipper-based survey, the CFS collects information on how U.S. establishments transport raw materials and finished goods; the types of commodities shipped by mode of transportation; the value, weight, origin, and destinations of shipments (including exports). The CFS does not include imports or shipments originating in any U.S. territories. Industry coverage includes: Mining, Manufacturing, Wholesale Trade, Select Retail and Services, and some auxiliary establishments (e.g., warehouses) of in-scope, multi-unit, and retail companies.

The CFS provides a modal picture of national freight flows, and represents the only publicly available source of commodity flow data for the highway mode. For more information on the Commodity Flow Survey data, please visit HERE.

There are multiple API datasets for each CFS cycle:

• Geographic Area Series (GAS)
• Temperature Control Series
• Exports Series
• Hazardous Materials Series
• Preliminary Release