(The Association of American Railroads issued the following on May 24.)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Freight traffic on U.S. railroads was down from last year during the week ended May 19, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported today. Traffic was impacted by continued flooding in the Midwest.
Intermodal volume totaled 236,313 trailers or containers, down 3.1 percent from last year, with container volume up 0.1 percent and trailer volume down 13.8 percent.
Carload freight, which doesn’t include the intermodal data, totaled 331,751 cars for the week, down 5.0 percent from last year. Loadings were down 5.9 percent in the West and 4.0 percent in the East. Total volume was estimated at 33.7 billion ton-miles, down 4.3 percent from last year.
Cumulative volume for the first 20 weeks of 2007 totaled 6,432,205 carloads, down 4.5 percent from 2006; 4,549,621 trailers or containers, off 1.2 percent; and total volume of an estimated 654.4 billion ton-miles, down 3.2 percent from last year.
On Canadian railroads, during the week ended May 19 carload traffic totaled 81,285 cars, up 1.3 percent from last year while intermodal volume totaled 45,849 trailers or containers, down 3.1 percent from last year.
Cumulative originations for the first 20 weeks of 2007 on the Canadian railroads totaled 1,550,273 carloads, down 1.6 percent from last year, and 900,473 trailers and containers, up 1.6 percent from last year.
Combined cumulative volume for the first 20 weeks of 2007 on U.S. and Canadian railroads totaled 7,982,478 carloads, down 3.9 percent from last year, and 5,450,094 trailers and containers, down 0.7 percent from last year.
The AAR also reported that carload freight on the Mexican railroad Kansas City Southern de Mexico (KCSM) during the week ended May 19 totaled 11,779 cars, up 5.8 percent from last year. KCSM reported intermodal volume of 4,714 trailers or containers, up 5.0 percent from the 20th week of 2006.
For the first 20 weeks of 2007, KCSM reported cumulative volume of 215,965 cars, down 4.9 percent from last year, and 84,137 trailers or containers, up 10.9 percent.
Railroads reporting to AAR account for 89 percent of U.S. carload freight and 98 percent of rail intermodal volume. When the U.S. operations of Canadian railroads are included, the figures increase to 96 percent and 100 percent. The Canadian railroads reporting to the AAR account for 91 percent of Canadian rail traffic. Railroads provide more than 40 percent of U.S. intercity freight transportation, more than any other mode, and rail traffic figures are regarded as an important economic indicator.