The Association of American Railroads (AAR) has reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending August 24, 2024.
This week’s total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 516,807 carloads and intermodal units, up 9.5 percent compared with the same week last year.
Total carloads for the week ending August 24 were 228,858 carloads, up 1.2 percent compared with the same week in 2023, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 287,949 containers and trailers, up 17.1 percent compared to 2023.
Seven of the ten carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2023. They included grain, up 5,519 carloads, to 18,914; petroleum and petroleum products, up 951 carloads, to 10,867; and miscellaneous carloads, up 602 carloads, to 9,360. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2023 were coal, down 5,785 carloads, to 62,543; nonmetallic minerals, down 329 carloads, to 32,891; and metallic ores and metals, down 212 carloads, to 21,812.
For the first 34 weeks of 2024, U.S. railroads reported a cumulative volume of 7,324,543 carloads, down 3.7 percent from last year, and 8,811,085 intermodal units, up 9.1 percent from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 34 weeks of 2024 was 16,135,628 carloads and intermodal units, an increase of 2.9 percent compared to last year.
North American rail volume for the week ending August 24, 2024, on nine reporting U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads totaled 310,429 carloads, down 4.5 percent compared with the same week last year, and 350,204 intermodal units, up 7.1 percent compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 660,633 carloads and intermodal units, up 1.3 percent. North American rail volume for the first 34 weeks of 2024 was 22,504,112 carloads and intermodal units, up 2.3 percent compared with 2023.
Canadian railroads reported 65,550 carloads for the week, down 22.0 percent, and 49,890 intermodal units, down 28.0 percent compared with the same week in 2023. For the first 34 weeks of 2024, Canadian railroads reported a cumulative rail traffic volume of 5,385,867 carloads, containers, and trailers, up 0.5 percent.
Mexican railroads reported 16,021 carloads for the week, up 6.8 percent compared with the same week last year, and 12,365 intermodal units, up 5.7 percent. Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first 34 weeks of 2024 was 982,617 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, up 3.8 percent from the same point last year.
To view the railroad traffic charts, click here.
