The U.S. electric power sector consumed 677 million short tons of coal in 2016, down 35 percent from its peak in 2008 and the lowest level since 1984, the Energy Information Administration reported.
Power generation accounted for over 93 percent of all coal consumed in the United States. An estimated two third of that coal was shipped either completely or in part by railroad.
After rail, the next two most common means of shipping coal is via barge or truck. Truck shipments have decreased slightly to nine percent in 2016, while barge shipments increased to 13 percent.
