U.S. freight-rail traffic ticks up in Week 16

U.S. freight-rail traffic for the week ending April 20 totaled 474,544 carloads and intermodal units, up 0.8% compared with the same week a year ago, according to Association of American Railroads data.

U.S. railroads logged 216,945 carloads in the week, down 6.7%, and 257,599 containers and trailers, up 8.2%.

Seven of the 10 carload commodity groups that AAR tracks every week posted an increase. They included motor vehicles and parts, up 15.3% to 16,877 carloads; petroleum and petroleum products, up 24.5% to 10,754; and forest products, up 8.9% to 8,427.

Commodity groups that posted decreases were coal, down 30.5% to 47,472 carloads; nonmetallic minerals, down 2.6% to 31,781; and metallic ores and metals, down 3.2%, to 21,100 carloads.

Meanwhile, Canadian railroads reported 96,737 carloads for the week, a 3.8% increase, and 75,954 intermodal units, a 6% increase. Mexican railroads logged 17,148 carloads, an 11.2% decrease, and 12,713 containers and trailers, a 6.8% decrease.

For the first 16 weeks of 2024 compared with the same period in 2023:
• U.S. railroads reported 7,433,623 carloads, containers and trailers, up 2.3%;
• Canadian railroads logged 2,556,647 carloads, containers and trailers, up 0.3 %; and
• Mexican railroads posted 476,396 carloads and intermodal units, up 9%.