The Association of American Railroads (AAR) has reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending January 11, 2020.
For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 501,624 carloads and intermodal units, down 9.6 percent compared with the same week last year.
Total carloads for the week ending January 11 were 239,119 carloads, down 10.1 percent compared with the same week in 2019, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 262,505 containers and trailers, down 9.1 percent compared to 2019.
Three of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2019. They were chemicals, up 848 carloads, to 33,764; miscellaneous carloads, up 765 carloads, to 10,671; and petroleum and petroleum products, up 388 carloads, to 14,303. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2019 included coal, down 16,224 carloads, to 70,831; grain, down 6,385 carloads, to 18,304; and metallic ores and metals, down 3,333 carloads, to 21,059.
For the first two weeks of 2020, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 454,683 carloads, down 6.8 percent from the same point last year; and 460,955 intermodal units, down 8.4 percent from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first two weeks of 2020 was 915,638 carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 7.6 percent compared to last year.
North American rail volume for the week ending January 11, 2020, on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 339,236 carloads, down 8.5 percent compared with the same week last year, and 350,726 intermodal units, down 7.7 percent compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 689,962 carloads and intermodal units, down 8.1 percent. North American rail volume for the first two weeks of 2020 was 1,259,635 carloads and intermodal units, down 6.4 percent compared with 2019.
Canadian railroads reported 79,508 carloads for the week, down 6.3 percent, and 69,486 intermodal units, down 3.9 percent compared with the same week in 2019. For the first two weeks of 2020, Canadian railroads reported cumulative rail traffic volume of 281,342 carloads, containers and trailers, down 2.4 percent.
Mexican railroads reported 20,609 carloads for the week, up 3.8 percent compared with the same week last year, and 18,735 intermodal units, down 0.2 percent. Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first two weeks of 2020 was 62,655 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, down 5 percent from the same point last year.
To view weekly rail charts, click here.
