The Association of American Railroads (AAR) has reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending September 17, 2022.
For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 490,654 carloads and intermodal units, down 2.9 percent compared with the same week last year.
Total carloads for the week ending September 17 were 239,528 carloads, up 2 percent compared with the same week in 2021, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 251,126 containers and trailers, down 7.3 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 3,948 carloads, to 72,774; nonmetallic minerals, up 2,491 carloads, to 35,163; and motor vehicles and parts, up 2,185 carloads, to 13,879. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2021 included metallic ores and metals, down 3,192 carloads, to 21,581; miscellaneous carloads, down 1,623 carloads, to 8,250; and forest products, down 1,362 carloads, to 9,076.
For the first 37 weeks of 2022, U.S. railroads reported a cumulative volume of 8,553,624 carloads, up 0.3 percent from the same point last year; and 9,740,253 intermodal units, down 5.1 percent from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 37 weeks of 2022 was 18,293,877 carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 2.7 percent compared to last year.
North American rail volume for the week ending September 17, 2022, on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 342,034 carloads, up 3.5 percent compared with the same week last year, and 341,595 intermodal units, down 4.7 percent compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 683,629 carloads and intermodal units, down 0.8 percent. North American rail volume for the first 37 weeks of 2022 was 25,025,034 carloads and intermodal units, down 2.4 percent compared with 2021.
Canadian railroads reported 81,350 carloads for the week, up 3.7 percent, and 75,196 intermodal units, up 0.6 percent compared with the same week in 2021. For the first 37 weeks of 2022, Canadian railroads reported a cumulative rail traffic volume of 5,351,880 carloads, containers, and trailers, down 2.4 percent.
Mexican railroads reported 21,156 carloads for the week, up 22.1 percent compared with the same week last year, and 15,273 intermodal units, up 18 percent. Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first 37 weeks of 2022 was 1,379,277 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, up 2.1 percent from the same point last year.
For the weekly rail charts, click here.
