Weekly rail traffic ending March 17, 2018
The Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending March 17, 2018.
For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 537,338 carloads and intermodal units, up 10.1 percent compared with the same week last year.
Total carloads for the week ending March 17 were 263,352 carloads, up 7.5 percent compared with the same week in 2017, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 273,986 containers and trailers, up 12.7 percent compared to 2017.
All of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2017. They included coal, up 8,750 carloads, to 85,939; nonmetallic minerals, up 3,445 carloads, to 35,240; and metallic ores and metals, up 2,310 carloads, to 22,421.
For the first 11 weeks of 2018, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 2,764,973 carloads, down 0.8 percent from the same point last year; and 2,966,335 intermodal units, up 6.2 percent from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 11 weeks of 2018 was 5,731,308 carloads and intermodal units, an increase of 2.7 percent compared to last year.
North American rail volume for the week ending March 17, 2018, on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 364,314 carloads, up 4.4 percent compared with the same week last year, and 360,590 intermodal units, up 12.3 percent compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 724,904 carloads and intermodal units, up 8.2 percent. North American rail volume for the first 11 weeks of 2018 was 7,712,133 carloads and intermodal units, up 2.4 percent compared with 2017.
Canadian railroads reported 79,314 carloads for the week, down 2.6 percent, and 68,715 intermodal units, up 14.5 percent compared with the same week in 2017. For the first 11 weeks of 2018, Canadian railroads reported cumulative rail traffic volume of 1,559,089 carloads, containers and trailers, up 2 percent.
Mexican railroads reported 21,648 carloads for the week, down 3.4 percent compared with the same week last year, and 17,889 intermodal units, down 0.3 percent. Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first 11 weeks of 2018 was 421,736 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, down 0.5 percent from the same point last year.
