AAR: U.S. rail traffic drops 17.2 percent in week 27

Total U.S. railroad traffic fell 17.2 percent to 442,113 carloads and intermodal units for the week ending July 9, the Association for American Railroads (AAR) reported yesterday.

U.S. railroad's total carloads for the week declined 16.5 percent to 226,615 units, while intermodal volume dropped 17.9 percent to 215,498 containers and trailers compared with the same week a year ago.

Two of the 10 carload commodity groups posted increases for the week. Miscellaneous carloads rose 12.2 percent to 9,283 units and grain increased 12 percent to 20,746 carloads.

Commodity groups that logged decreases for the week were coal, down 23.4 percent to 72,998 carloads; nonmetallic minerals, down 20.9 percent to 29,069 carloads; petroleum and petroleum products, down 19 percent to 10,432 carloads; and motor vehicles and parts, also down 19 percent to 12,399 carloads.

Canadian railroads reported 66,806 carloads for the week, down 11.3 percent, and 58,653 intermodal units, down 6.6 percent. Mexican railroads posted 15,272 carloads for the week, down 7.2 percent compared with the same week last year, and 11,509 intermodal units, up 5.7 percent.

For the first 27 weeks of 2016, U.S. railroads posted total combined traffic of 13,450,332 carloads and intermodal units, down 7.7 percent; Canadian railroads logged cumulative volume of 3,442,792 carloads and intermodal units, down 7.8 percent; and Mexican railroads posted 734,309 carloads and intermodal units, which was flat compared with the same period a year ago.