AAR: North American Rail Volume Up Through Week 18

(BNSF Photograph)

Through the first 18 weeks of 2024 (ending May 4), total North American carload and intermodal traffic rose 2.1% from the same point last year, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported May 8. The U.S., Canada and Mexico all experienced gains.

North American rail volume for the first 18 weeks of this year on 10 reporting U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads came in at 11,813,804 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers. Cumulative volume in the U.S. was 8,373,031 carloads and intermodal units, up 2.1% from 2023; in Canada, 2,896,564 carloads and intermodal units, up 0.6%; and in Mexico, 544,209 carloads and intermodal units, up 10.5%.

For the week ending May 4, 2024, U.S. Class I railroads moved a total of 463,106 carloads and intermodal units—flat with the prior-year period, according to the AAR. This comprises 213,410 carloads, down 5.1% from 2023, and 249,696 containers and trailers, up 4.9% compared with 2023.

Seven of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase for the week ending May 4, 2024, vs. the same week last year. They included petroleum and petroleum products, up 1,611 carloads, to 10,628; miscellaneous carloads, up 1,610 carloads, to 8,184; and grain, up 1,193 carloads, to 21,725. Commodity groups that posted declines were coal, down 15,611 carloads, to 46,928; nonmetallic minerals, down 1,615 carloads, to 32,965; and farm products excluding grain, and food, down 731 carloads, to 15,381.

For the first 18 weeks of this year, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 3,836,119 carloads, dipping 4.8% from the same point last year; and 4,536,912 intermodal units, gaining 8.7% over last year.

North American rail volume for the week ending May 4, 2024, on 10 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 324,302 carloads, down 0.9% compared with the year-ago period, and 337,489 intermodal units, up 5.3% from last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America came in at 661,791 carloads and intermodal units, increasing 2.2%.

For the week ending May 4, 2024, Canadian railroads reported 94,801 carloads, a 7.4% increase, and 76,026 intermodal units, a 5.7% increase from the same week last year.

Mexican railroads reported 16,091 carloads for the week ending May 4, 2024, gaining 12.9% over the same point last year, and 11,767 intermodal units, increasing 13.4%.