The necessity to diversify the transport network has been a central issue within the development of policy and planning, because the cargo transportation network first came under the government spotlight in the Intermodal Surface Transportation Performance Act1. This legislation, enacted in 1991, spurred the growth of a modern intermodal transportation network that’s intended to raise the efficiency of cargo handling practices across the nation.

Important sections of the development have dealt with improving traffic flow to and in the leading transport hubs with a solid concentrate in the routes that are used to connect different ways of mass transportation, like sea and railroad. A larger part of the problem for intermodal transportation in the past was the dearth of direct train links to many seaports that compelled containers to be sent overland by truck, often over routes that were unsuited to the growing size and volume of the traffic2. The problems with the roadways are mainly being resolved by the individual states with the introduction of fast transport corridors and developments to the expressway system which connects the leading seaports in the United States.

The growth of intermodal services in Memphis3 which are directly linked to seaports along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts are becoming an important transportation hub for efficiently going containerized cargo across inland America. These types of intermodal connections are reducing the necessity to send freight over middle distance by truck, therefore in the environmental surroundings also they are reducing the pressure in the roadways.

At once, the greatest rail transportation companies have made substantial investments in altering their rolling stock from coal and grain cars to container cars.
All of the development and also the growth of the freight handling facilities along the Eastern seaboard have produced a significant contribution to the recovery of the economy. By revivifying regional economies and creating jobs, the development of the intermodal freight network across America has made itself a crucial component within the future stability and growth of the market.

References:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intermodal_Surface_Transportation_Efficiency_Act
2. https://www.transportation1.org/tif3report/intermodal.html
3. https://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2013/feb/14/editorial-our-intermodal-future/