The Association of American Railroads (AAR) has reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending August 27, 2022.
For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 511,574 carloads and intermodal units, up 1.4 percent compared with the same week last year.
Total carloads for the week ending August 27 were 242,633 carloads, up 3.4 percent compared with the same week in 2021, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 268,941 containers and trailers, down 0.3 percent compared to 2021.
Four of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2021. They included coal, up 5,893 carloads, to 74,295; grain, up 2,224 carloads, to 19,458; and motor vehicles and parts, up 1,323 carloads, to 14,624. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2021 included petroleum and petroleum products, down 1,228 carloads, to 9,642; metallic ores and metals, down 660 carloads, to 23,112; and forest products, down 419 carloads, to 9,834.
For the first 34 weeks of 2022, U.S. railroads reported a cumulative volume of 7,849,281 carloads, up 0.1 percent from the same point last year; and 8,976,594 intermodal units, down 5.3 percent from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 34 weeks of 2022 was 16,825,875 carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 2.9 percent compared to last year.
North American rail volume for the week ending August 27, 2022, on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 340,747 carloads, up 2.4 percent compared with the same week last year, and 359,832 intermodal units, up 0.7 percent compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 700,579 carloads and intermodal units, up 1.5 percent. North American rail volume for the first 34 weeks of 2022 was 22,997,308 carloads and intermodal units, down 2.7 percent compared with 2021.
Canadian railroads reported 76,361 carloads for the week, up 1.8 percent, and 74,570 intermodal units, up 3.8 percent compared with the same week in 2021. For the first 34 weeks of 2022, Canadian railroads reported a cumulative rail traffic volume of 4,897,939 carloads, containers, and trailers, down 3 percent.
Mexican railroads reported 21,753 carloads for the week, down 6.3 percent compared with the same week last year, and 16,321 intermodal units, up 4.3 percent. Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first 34 weeks of 2022 was 1,273,494 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, up 1 percent from the same point last year.
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