The Association of American Railroads (AAR) has reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending March 19, 2022.
For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 499,362 carloads and intermodal units, down 2.7 percent compared with the same week last year.
Total carloads for the week ending March 19 were 232,770 carloads, up 1.1 percent compared with the same week in 2021, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 266,592 containers and trailers, down 5.7 percent compared to 2021.
Five of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2021. They included coal, up 4,182 carloads, to 63,929; chemicals, up 2,656 carloads, to 34,178; and nonmetallic minerals, up 1,984 carloads, to 31,151. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2021 included grain, down 4,014 carloads, to 23,317; petroleum and petroleum products, down 2,457 carloads, to 9,181; and motor vehicles and parts, down 958 carloads, to 13,953.
For the first 11 weeks of 2022, U.S. railroads reported a cumulative volume of 2,521,622 carloads, up 3 percent from the same point last year; and 2,828,405 intermodal units, down 7.1 percent from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 11 weeks of 2022 was 5,350,027 carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 2.6 percent compared to last year.
North American rail volume for the week ending March 19, 2022, on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 328,840 carloads, down 0.7 percent compared with the same week last year, and 348,166 intermodal units, down 6 percent compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 677,006 carloads and intermodal units, down 3.5 percent. North American rail volume for the first 11 weeks of 2022 was 7,249,341 carloads and intermodal units, down 4 percent compared with 2021.
Canadian railroads reported 73,635 carloads for the week, down 9.5 percent, and 65,486 intermodal units, down 10.7 percent compared with the same week in 2021. For the first 11 weeks of 2022, Canadian railroads reported a cumulative rail traffic volume of 1,487,674 carloads, containers, and trailers, down 10.2 percent.
Mexican railroads reported 22,435 carloads for the week, up 16.2 percent compared with the same week last year, and 16,088 intermodal units, up 13.1 percent. Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first 11 weeks of 2022 was 411,640 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, up 3.4 percent from the same point last year.
To view the weekly rail traffic charts, click here.
