AAR reports weekly rail traffic for week ending January 16, 2016
The Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending Jan. 16, 2016. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 506,433 carloads and intermodal units, down 8.2 percent compared with the same week last year.
Total carloads for the week ending Jan. 16 were 242,670 carloads, down 16.6 percent compared with the same week in 2015, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 263,763 containers and trailers, up 1.1 percent compared to 2015. Three of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2015. They were miscellaneous carloads, up 21.4 percent to 8,437 carloads; motor vehicles and parts, up 2.8 percent to 16,751 carloads; and chemicals, up 2.2 percent to 31,687 carloads.Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2015 included coal, down 32.6 percent to 75,308 carloads; metallic ores and metals, down 24.2 percent to 18,690 carloads; and petroleum and petroleum products, down 18.5 percent to 12,852 carloads. For the first 2 weeks of 2016, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 481,891 carloads, down 15.1 percent from the same point last year; and 522,702 intermodal units, up 4.2 percent from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 2 weeks of 2016 was 1,004,593 carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 6 percent compared to last year. North American rail volume for the week ending Jan. 16, 2016, on 13 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 328,028 carloads, down 15.2 percent compared with the same week last year, and 332,652 intermodal units, up 0.6 percent compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 660,680 carloads and intermodal units, down 7.9 percent. North American rail volume for the first 2 weeks of 2016 was 1,310,999 carloads and intermodal units, down 5.7 percent compared with 2015. Canadian railroads reported 68,470 carloads for the week, down 13.6 percent, and 58,209 intermodal units, down 0.9 percent compared with the same week in 2015. For the first 2 weeks of 2016, Canadian railroads reported cumulative rail traffic volume of 253,768 carloads, containers and trailers, down 5.6 percent. Mexican railroads reported 16,888 carloads for the week, up 1.8 percent compared with the same week last year, and 10,680 intermodal units, down 3.4 percent. Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first 2 weeks of 2016 was 52,638 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, up 1.8 percent from the same point last year.
