(The following report appeared on the Association of American Railroads’ website on October 7.)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. rail intermodal traffic soared 9.5 percent (94,775 units) in September and 9.3 percent (238,698 trailers and containers) in the third quarter, while U.S. rail carload traffic rose 0.8 percent (13,381 carloads) in September and 1.1 percent (48,823 carloads) in the third quarter, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported today.
In September 2004, U.S. freight railroads reporting to the AAR originated 1,694,436 carloads (up from 1,681,055 in September 2003) and 1,096,488 intermodal units (up from 1,001,713 in September 2003). For the third quarter of 2004, U.S. rail carloadings totaled 4,362,719, up from 4,313,896 carloads in 2003, and intermodal traffic totaled 2,809,861 trailers and containers, up from 2,571,163 in 2003.
For the first nine months of 2004, U.S. railroads originated 13,084,728 carloads (up 3.0 percent, or 384,581 carloads) from 2003, and 8,144,940 intermodal units (up 9.5 percent, or 707,713 units) from 2003. Total volume was estimated at 1.18 trillion ton-miles, up 4.1 percent from 2003.
“We’re running out of superlatives to describe rail intermodal growth,” said AAR Vice President Craig F. Rockey. “The top 3 highest volume intermodal weeks in history occurred in September 2004, and the top 18 weeks in history have all occurred in the past six months. Everyone benefits from this growth — shippers and consumers (who gain from intermodal’s efficiency and cost-effectiveness), motorists (who gain from reduced highway congestion and reduced emissions), and, of course, railroads themselves.”
U.S. rail carload traffic in September 2004 was paced by coal (up 2.6 percent, or 17,191 carloads, to 678,259 carloads); metallic ores (up 17.5 percent, or 11,428 carloads, to 76,837 carloads); and primary metal products (up 13.2 percent, or 8,424 carloads, to 72,069 carloads). Carloads of chemicals in September rose 3.5 percent (4,963 carloads) to 148,211 carloads. On the down side, carloads of motor vehicles and equipment fell 7.2 percent (9,146 carloads) to 118,413 carloads, while carloads of nonmetallic minerals were down 21.3 percent (8,583 carloads) to 31,740 carloads. All told, 9 of the 19 major commodity categories tracked by the AAR saw carload gains in September 2004.
“U.S. rail traffic in September was negatively impacted in the south and mid-Atlantic by the series of hurricanes, and the railroads affected have done a tremendous job restoring their operational capability,” Rockey noted.
Although intermodal now accounts for more revenue than coal for major U.S. railroads, coal remains the largest single commodity carried by rail. In the third quarter of 2004, coal traffic was up 2.8 percent (48,053 carloads). For the year to date, coal traffic is up 3.0 percent (151,958 carloads).
Canadian railroads originated 335,484 carloads in September 2004, up 3.1 percent (10,110 carloads) over September 2003. Canadian carload gains in September were paced by chemicals (up 9.0 percent, or 6,126 carloads, to 74,530 carloads) and metallic ores (up 47.9 percent, or 4,084 carloads, to 12,616 carloads). Grain carloads were down 14.9 percent (6,122 carloads) in September to 35,071 carloads. In the third quarter of 2004, Canadian railroads originated 852,369 carloads (up 6.5 percent, or 52,147 carloads. For the first nine months of 2004, Canadian carload traffic of 2,604,565 carloads was up a dramatic 8.1 percent (194,395 carloads) over the same period in 2003.
Canadian intermodal traffic of 215,893 units in September 2004 was up 1.9 percent (4,127 units) from September 2003, while third quarter intermodal traffic of 552,503 units was fractionally higher (611 units, or 0.1 percent) than last year. For 2004 to date, Canadian intermodal traffic was up 0.2 percent (2,567 units) to 1,627,086 trailers and containers.
Carloads originated on Transportación Ferroviaria Mexicana (TFM), a major Mexican railroad, were up 15.2 percent (6,091 carloads) in September, up 10.4 percent (10,709 carloads) in the third quarter, and up 2.3 percent (7,514 carloads) for the year to date. Intermodal originations on TFM were up 21.9 percent (3,633 units) in September, up 15.9 percent (6,795 units) in the third quarter, and up 4.6 percent (6,345 units) for the year to date.
For just the week ended October 2, the AAR reported the following totals for U.S. railroads: 344,442 carloads, up 0.9 percent from the corresponding week in 2003, with loadings down 5.4 percent in the East and up 6.0 percent in the West; intermodal volume of 228,152 trailers and containers, up 8.8 percent and the third highest week ever; and total volume of an estimated 31.2 billion ton-miles, up 1.3 percent from the equivalent week last year.
For Canadian railroads during the week ended October 2, the AAR reported volume of 73,944 carloads, up 8.5 percent from last year; and 45,496 trailers and containers, up 1.1 percent from the corresponding week in 2003.
Combined cumulative volume for the first 39 weeks of 2004 on 15 reporting U.S. and Canadian railroads totaled 15,689,293 carloads, up 3.8 percent (578,976 carloads) from last year; and 9,772,026 trailers and containers, up 7.8 percent (710,280 trailers and containers) from 2003’s first 39 weeks.