advertisement

---

Different month, same freight-traffic story for U.S. railroads. In February,
U.S. roads' intermodal volume rose 5.3 percent (36,692 trailers and containers) while carload traffic fell 0.7 percent (8,352 units) compared with February 2002, according to Association of American Railroads data.


Railroads moved more carloads of metallic ores (46.5 percent), metals and metal products (8.2 percent), and chemicals (3.0 percent), but fewer carloads of grain (6.4 percent), crushed stone and gravel (6.1 percent), and coal (5.7 percent).


"The fact that rail volumes, excluding coal, are actually up a fair amount, despite the harsh winter weather — particularly in the East — may suggest that better economic times lie ahead," said AAR Vice President Craig Rockey in a prepared statement.


During 2003's first two months, U.S. roads' carload traffic dropped 0.4 percent (10,372 units) and intermodal traffic increased 8.4 percent (123,856 trailers and containers) compared with the same 2002 period.


February brought more of the same for Canadian roads, too. Carload traffic decreased 0.2 percent (593 units) and intermodal traffic rose 7.3 percent (10,970 containers and trailers) compared with February 2002.


During the year's first two months, Canadian roads' carload traffic dropped 0.7 percent (3,668 units) and intermodal traffic increased 12.6 percent (39,411 units) compared with a similar 2002 period.


On a combined cumulative-volume basis through nine weeks, 15 reporting U.S. and Canadian railroads moved 3,364,528 carloads, down 0.4 percent (14,040 units) and 1,949,501 trailers and containers, up 9.1 percent (163,267 trailers and containers) compared with 2002's first nine weeks.


In Mexico, TFM S.A. de C.V. increased February carloads 10.5 percent (3,391 units) and intermodal originations, 44.4 percent (4,542 trailers and containers), compared with February 2002.


During January and February, TFM increased carloads 12.3 percent (8,498 units) and intermodal originations, 54.5 percent (11,025 units), compared with the same 2002 period.