The Association of American Railroads (AAR) has reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending May 21, 2022.
For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 506,976 carloads and intermodal units, down 4.1 percent compared with the same week last year.
Total carloads for the week ending May 21 were 233,244 carloads, down 3.7 percent compared with the same week in 2021, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 273,732 containers and trailers, down 4.5 percent compared to 2021.
Four of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2021. They included coal, up 966 carloads, to 65,609; chemicals, up 784 carloads, to 33,943; and forest products, up 171 carloads, to 10,300. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2021 included grain, down 3,515 carloads, to 21,797; miscellaneous carloads, down 3,023 carloads, to 8,129; and metallic ores and metals, down 1,932 carloads, to 21,664.
For the first 20 weeks of 2022, U.S. railroads reported a cumulative volume of 4,602,072 carloads, up 0.4 percent from the same point last year; and 5,274,963 intermodal units, down 6.8 percent from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 20 weeks of 2022 was 9,877,035 carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 3.6 percent compared to last year.
North American rail volume for the week ending May 21, 2022, on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 329,823 carloads, down 2.8 percent compared with the same week last year, and 365,682 intermodal units, down 3 percent compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 695,505 carloads and intermodal units, down 2.9 percent. North American rail volume for the first 20 weeks of 2022 was 13,466,320 carloads and intermodal units, down 3.8 percent compared with 2021.
Canadian railroads reported 75,281 carloads for the week, down 1.3 percent, and 76,189 intermodal units, up 0.9 percent compared with the same week in 2021. For the first 20 weeks of 2022, Canadian railroads reported a cumulative rail traffic volume of 2,843,183 carloads, containers, and trailers, down 6.4 percent.
Mexican railroads reported 21,298 carloads for the week, up 3.1 percent compared with the same week last year, and 15,761 intermodal units, up 4.4 percent. Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first 20 weeks of 2022 was 746,102 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, up 3.2 percent from the same point last year.
To view the U.S. Rail Traffic charts, click here.
