U.S. rail traffic slide continued in Week 10

U.S. rail traffic fell 4.7 percent to 508,958 carloads and intermodal units during the week ending March 9 compared with the same week in 2018, according to Association of American Railroads (AAR) data.

Railroads logged 238,104 carloads, down 7 percent during the week, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 270,854 containers and trailers, down 2.6 percent.

Of the 10 carload commodity groups that AAR follows on a weekly basis, only one group — petroleum and petroleum products — posted an increase versus a year ago. Carloads in that category rose 1,179 units to 10,658.

Commodity groups logging decreases during the week included coal, down 7,238 carloads to 76,562; grain, down 3,716 carloads to 19,219; and nonmetallic minerals, down 3,116 carloads to 30,217.

Meanwhile, Canadian railroads reported 75,534 carloads for the week, down 5.3 percent, and 67,818 intermodal units, down 2.1 percent. Mexican railroads reported 21,605 carloads for the week, down 0.7 percent compared with the same week last year, and 18,907 intermodal units, up 0.3 percent.

For the first 10 weeks of 2019 compared with the same period in 2018:
• U.S. railroads reported 5,158,090 carloads and intermodal units, down 0.7 percent;
• Canadian railroads reported 1,428,764 carloads, containers and trailers, up 1.3 percent; and
• Mexican railroads reported 354,388 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, down 7.6 percent.