Rail Traffic Uptick for Week 41
Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor
For the week ending Oct. 15, 2022, total U.S. rail traffic was up 0.7% over the same week last year; carloads came in 3.2% higher while intermodal volume continued its downward trend, dipping 1.6%, according to the Association of American Railroads’ (AAR) Oct. 19 report.
In Week 41 (ending Oct. 15, 2022), U.S. Class I railroads hauled a total of 500,304 carloads and intermodal units, comprising 237,263 carloads and 263,041 containers and trailers. This is the first time since Week 35 (ending Sept. 3, 2022) that a gain in total rail traffic has been reported.
According to AAR, for the week ending Oct. 14, 2022, five of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2021. They included coal, up 8,961 carloads, to 66,914; motor vehicles and parts, up 1,454 carloads, to 14,839; and nonmetallic minerals, up 1,240 carloads, to 33,404. Commodity groups that posted declines included chemicals, down 1,440 carloads, to 31,288; miscellaneous carloads, down 1,420 carloads, to 8,161; and forest products, down 1,107 carloads, to 8,786.
For the first 41 weeks of 2022, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 9,489,495 carloads, up 0.1% from the same point last year; and 10,784,078 intermodal units, down 5% from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 41 weeks of 2022 was 20,273,573 carloads and intermodal units, a 2.6% fall-off from 2021.
North American rail volume for the week ending Oct. 15, 2022, on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 344,407 carloads, up 3.9% from the prior-year period, and 350,845 intermodal units, flat with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 695,252 carloads and intermodal units, increasing 1.9%. North American rail volume for the first 41 weeks of 2022 was 27,787,375 carloads and intermodal units, a 2.1% drop from 2021.
Canadian railroads reported 84,165 carloads for the week, gaining 6.1%, and 70,908 intermodal units, gaining 6.2% from the same week in 2021. For the first 41 weeks of 2022, they reported cumulative rail traffic volume of 5,967,749 carloads, containers and trailers, down 1.9% from the prior-year period.
Mexican railroads reported 22,979 carloads for the week, up 3.6% from same week in 2021, and 16,896 intermodal units, down 0.3%. Their cumulative volume for the first 41 weeks of 2022 was 1,546,053 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, rising 4% from the same period last year.
