U.S. freight-rail traffic climbs 5.4% in Week 9

U.S. freight railroads hauled 508,531 carloads and intermodal units in the week ending March 1, a 5.4% increase compared with the same week last year, according to Association of American Railroads data.

Carloads for the week totaled 222,757, up 1.4%, while intermodal units reached 285,774 containers and trailers, up 8.8%.

Six of the 10 carload commodity groups that AAR tracks weekly posted increases. They included coal, up 4.7% to 60,073 carloads; grain, up 7.7% to 20,924; and motor vehicles and parts, up 3.4% to 16,435.

Commodity groups that posted decreases included nonmetallic minerals, down 4.9% to 27,396 carloads; metallic ores and metals, down 3.7% to 18,964; and farm products, excluding grain and food, down 1.3% to 17,567. 

Meanwhile, Canadian railroads reported 91,245 carloads for the week, up 2.4%, and 66,807 intermodal units, down 6%. Mexican railroads posted 14,215 carloads, up 28.5%; and 11,470 intermodal units, up 61.5%.

For the first nine weeks of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024:

• U.S. railroads logged 4,305,612 carloads and intermodal units, up 3.7%;

• Canadian railroads posted 1,384,628 carloads, containers and trailers, down 0.7%; and

• Mexican railroads reported 209,321 carloads and intermodal units, down 4.2%.