WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. rail carload traffic fell 6.5 percent (88,214 carloads) in March 2002 compared to March 2001, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported on April 4.
Coal traffic in March 2002 was down 9.7 percent (54,534 carloads) compared with March 2001; grain was down 11.3 percent (10,506 carloads); and metallic ores was down 22.3 percent (9,885 carloads). These three commodity categories accounted for 85 percent of the total net carload decline for the month. In March 2002, carloads of motor vehicles and equipment were down 2.2 percent (2,294 carloads), and carloads of chemicals were down 0.8 percent (949 carloads).
On the positive side, carloads of crushed stone, sand and gravel were up 4.4 percent (3,147 carloads) in March 2002, while carloads of grain mill products (up 6.1 percent, or 2,153 carloads) and lumber and wood products (up 9.1 percent, or 2,007 carloads) also rose.
U.S. intermodal rail traffic, which consists of trailers and containers on flat cars and is not included in carload figures, was down 1.0 percent (6,931 trailers and containers) in March 2002 compared with March 2001.
“Obviously, the steep drop in coal carloadings in March was the primary factor behind the decline in overall rail traffic for the month,” noted AAR Vice President Craig F. Rockey. “Stockpiles at coal-fired power plants are relatively high, export demand for U.S. coal is relatively weak, and natural gas prices have come down. Combine these points with the fact that March 2001 was a great month for rail coal — up almost 58,000 carloads over March 2000 — and it’s not surprising that year-over-year coal carloadings fell last month.”
For the first three months of 2002, U.S. rail carloadings totaled 4,128,763 cars, down 3.8 percent (165,010 carloads) from last year. During this period, coal carloads were down 4.7 percent (83,570 carloads), carloads of metallic ores were down 19.2 percent (27,655 carloads), and carloads of grain were down 5.2 percent (15,562 carloads). Carloads of motor vehicles and equipment were up 4.9 percent (14,236 carloads) in March 2002, while carloads of crushed stone and gravel were up 2.8 percent (6,041 carloads).
U.S. intermodal traffic, which is not included in the carload data, totaled 2,166,131 trailers and containers for the first three months of 2002, down 0.4 percent (8,145 units), with containers up 2.7 percent (40,771 units) and trailers down 7.5 percent (48,916 units).
Total volume on U.S. railroads for the first 13 weeks of 2002 was estimated at 362.2 billion ton-miles, down 2.2 percent from last year.
Canadian rail carload traffic was down 5.1 percent (13,183 carloads) in March 2002, paced by significant declines in carloads of farm products excluding grain (down 59.0 percent, or 6,655 carloads) and grain (down 18.6 percent, or 6,598 carloads). Coal carloadings in March in Canada were down 5.7 percent (2,109 carloads). On the positive side, carloads of motor vehicles and equipment were up 6.4 percent (2,016 carloads) and carloads of chemicals were up 3.4 percent (1,826 carloads).
For the first three months of 2002, Canadian carload traffic totaled 773,920 cars, down 5.4 percent (44,051 carloads), due mainly to declines in grain (down 19.9 percent, or 24,585 carloads), coal (down 15.4 percent, or 18,643 carloads), and farm products excluding grain (down 49.8 percent, or 15,117 carloads).
Canadian intermodal traffic was up 4.3 percent (5,981 units) in March 2002 compared with March 2001. For the first 13 weeks of 2002, Canadian intermodal traffic totaled 452,390 trailers and containers, up 2.0 percent from the first three months of 2001.
Carloads originated on Transportación Ferroviaria Mexicana (TFM), a major Mexican railroad, were down 9.4 percent (2,770 carloads) in March, while intermodal originations were up 9.6 percent (841 trailers and containers). For the first three months of 2002, TFM carloadings declined 5.7 percent (5,176 carloads), while intermodal traffic fell 4.1 percent (1,172 units).
“The rail systems of Canada, the United States, and Mexico form an integrated network of more than 600 individual railroads hauling some 1.6 million freight cars over a network of more than 183,000 miles. It is by far the most efficient, cost-effective freight rail network in the world,” Rockey remarked. “Railroads in all three countries look forward to the resumption of strong economic growth throughout the continent and a corresponding increase in rail carloadings.”
For just the week ended March 30, the AAR reported the following totals for U.S. railroads: 320,430 carloads, down 8.2 percent from the corresponding week in 2001, with loadings down 9.5 percent in the East and down 7.1 percent in the West; intermodal volume of 177,336 trailers and containers, up 0.8 percent; and total volume of an estimated 28.0 billion ton-miles, down 7.0 percent from the equivalent week last year.
For Canadian railroads during the week ended March 30, the AAR reported volume of 60,090 carloads, down 8.5 percent from last year; and 35,597 trailers and containers, down 2.3 percent from the corresponding week in 2001.
Combined cumulative volume for the first 13 weeks of 2002 on 16 reporting U.S. and Canadian railroads totaled 4,902,683 carloads, down 4.1 percent (209,061 carloads) from last year; and 2,618,521 trailers and containers, up 0.03 percent (874 trailers and containers) from 2001’s first 13 weeks.