WASHINGTON, D.C. — With intermodal leading the way, total freight traffic on U.S. railroads as measured in ton-miles registered its 5th consecutive weekly gain from year ago levels during the week ended July 27, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported on its website.
Total volume for the week was estimated at 29.4 billion ton-miles, up 2.1 percent from the comparable week last year.
Intermodal volume was up for the 16th straight week, totaling 191,630 trailers and containers during the week, up 9.0 percent from the comparable 2001 week. Container volume was up 13.1 percent, while trailer loadings declined 1.5 percent.
Carload freight, which doesn’t include the intermodal data, totaled 341,453 cars, 1.5 percent higher than last year, with loadings up 2.3 percent in the West and 0.5 percent in the East.
Fifteen of 19 commodity groups registered increases from last year, with loadings of farm products other than grain up 21.5 percent, coke increasing by 10.3 percent and metallic ores gaining 7.5 percent. Loadings of primary forest products were off 6.8 percent, while coal volume declined by 2.1 percent.
The AAR also reported the following cumulative totals for U.S. railroads during the first 30 weeks of 2002: 9,738,995 carloads, down 1.7 percent from last year; intermodal volume of 5,273,319 trailers and containers, up 4.7 percent; and total volume of an estimated 834.5 billion ton?miles, down 0.9 percent from last year’s first 30 weeks.
Railroads reporting to AAR account for 90 percent of U.S. carload freight and 97 percent of rail intermodal volume. When the U.S. operations of Canadian railroads are included, the figures increase to 96 percent and 99 percent. Railroads provide more than 40 percent of the nation’s intercity freight transportation, more than any other mode, and rail traffic figures are regarded as an important economic indicator.
Intermodal traffic was up but carload volume was down on Canadian railroads during the week ended July 27. Intermodal traffic totaled 39,221 trailers and containers, up 10.5 percent from last year. Carload volume of 57,726 cars was down 4.2 percent from the comparable week last year.
Cumulative originations for the first 30 weeks of 2002 on the Canadian railroads totated 1,789,592 carloads, down 3.4 percent from last year, and 1,118,544 trailers and containers, up 7.9 from last year.
Combined cumulative volume for the first 30 weeks of 2002 on 16 reporting U.S. and Canadian railroads totaled 11,528,587 carloads, down 2.0 percent from last year and 6,391,863 trailers and containers, up 5.2 percent from last year.
The AAR also reported that carload freight on the Mexican railroad Transportacion Ferroviaria Mexicana (TFM) during the week ended July 27 totaled 10,081 cars originated or received from connecting lines, up 2.8 percent from last year. TFM reported intermodal volume of 3,735 trailers or containers, down 1.9 percent from the 30th week of 2001. For the first 30 weeks of 2002, TFM reported cumulative volume of 311,510 cars, down 1.6 percent from last year, and 109,486 trailers or containers, up 6.4 percent.