The Association of American Railroads (AAR) has reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending December 14, 2019.
For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 520,589 carloads and intermodal units, down 8.5 percent compared with the same week last year.
Total carloads for the week ending December 14 were 243,290 carloads, down 9 percent compared with the same week in 2018, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 277,299 containers and trailers, down 8 percent compared to 2018.
Three of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2018. They were motor vehicles and parts, up 760 carloads, to 18,061; miscellaneous carloads, up 208 carloads, to 10,435; and petroleum and petroleum products, up 93 carloads, to 13,643. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2018 included coal, down 18,747 carloads, to 72,320; grain, down 1,884 carloads, to 20,709; and metallic ores and metals, down 1,287 carloads, to 22,633.
For the first 50 weeks of 2019, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 12,535,766 carloads, down 4.7 percent from the same point last year; and 13,287,891 intermodal units, down 5 percent from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 50 weeks of 2019 was 25,823,657 carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 4.8 percent compared to last year.
North American rail volume for the week ending December 14, 2019, on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 344,439 carloads, down 7.7 percent compared with the same week last year, and 365,323 intermodal units, down 7.1 percent compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 709,762 carloads and intermodal units, down 7.4 percent. North American rail volume for the first 50 weeks of 2019 was 35,264,477 carloads and intermodal units, down 3.8 percent compared with 2018.
Canadian railroads reported 81,556 carloads for the week, down 3.7 percent, and 69,669 intermodal units, down 4.2 percent compared with the same week in 2018. For the first 50 weeks of 2019, Canadian railroads reported cumulative rail traffic volume of 7,552,348 carloads, containers and trailers, down 0.4 percent.
Mexican railroads reported 19,593 carloads for the week, down 7.6 percent compared with the same week last year, and 18,355 intermodal units, down 4.9 percent. Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first 50 weeks of 2019 was 1,888,472 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, down 2.9 percent from the same point last year.
Due to the holidays, weekly rail traffic reports for Week 51 will be released on Friday, December 27, 2019 and Week 52 will be released on Friday, January 3, 2020.
To view the weekly rail traffic charts, click here.
