AAR: Last month was intermodal's worst January in a decade

U.S. railroads originated 1,843,624 carloads, containers and trailers in January, a 3.2% decrease compared with volumes in January 2022, according to Association of American Railroads data.

Although the number of carloads rose 2.2% to 923,696, the number of intermodal units plunged 8.1% to 919,928 containers and trailers.

During the month, 12 of the 20 carload commodity categories tracked by the AAR posted carload gains compared with January 2022. These included crushed stone, sand and gravel, up 22.6%; coal, up 4.6%; and motor vehicles and parts, up 13.4%.

Commodities that posted declines last month compared with the same period a year ago included chemicals, down 11.4%; all other carloads, down 10.3%; and lumber and wood products, down 14.5%.

Rail traffic trends last month were similar to trends at the end of 2022, bringing a sense of optimism as well as caution, said AAR Senior Vice President John Gray in a press release.

"For example, this was the best January for carloads of crushed stone and sand on record, largely due to the growth in domestic natural gas production and the need for frac sand. Automotive traffic, although not yet at pre-pandemic levels, had a healthy improvement over 2022," he said.

On the flip side, last month was the worst January for intermodal traffic since 2013, "with major retailers cutting back on inventories and consumer spending — especially on goods — having contracted," Gray added.