The Association of American Railroads (AAR) has reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending November 10, 2018.
For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 547,236 carloads and intermodal units, up 1.4 percent compared with the same week last year.
Total carloads for the week ending November 10 were 261,875 carloads, up 0.1 percent compared with the same week in 2017, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 285,361 containers and trailers, up 2.6 percent compared to 2017.
Five of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2017. They included petroleum and petroleum products, up 3,044 carloads, to 13,352; miscellaneous carloads, up 2,081 carloads, to 11,795; and chemicals, up 800 carloads, to 31,431. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2017 included nonmetallic minerals, down 3,858 carloads, to 32,970; grain, down 1,471 carloads, to 21,389; and coal, down 628 carloads, to 84,532.
For the first 45 weeks of 2018, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 11,848,471 carloads, up 1.8 percent from the same point last year; and 12,561,279 intermodal units, up 5.7 percent from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 45 weeks of 2018 was 24,409,750 carloads and intermodal units, an increase of 3.8 percent compared to last year.
North American rail volume for the week ending November 10, 2018, on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 369,262 carloads, up 0.9 percent compared with the same week last year, and 376,942 intermodal units, up 2.6 percent compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 746,204 carloads and intermodal units, up 1.8 percent. North American rail volume for the first 45 weeks of 2018 was 32,954,114 carloads and intermodal units, up 3.5 percent compared with 2017.
Canadian railroads reported 87,750 carloads for the week, up 8.0 percent, and 72,172 intermodal units, up 3.4 percent compared with the same week in 2017. For the first 45 weeks of 2018, Canadian railroads reported cumulative rail traffic volume of 6,797,832 carloads, containers and trailers, up 3.8 percent.
Mexican railroads reported 19,637 carloads for the week, down 14.8 percent compared with the same week last year, and 19,409 intermodal units, up 0.2 percent. Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first 45 weeks of 2018 was 1,746,532 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers.
