(The Association of American Railroads issued the following on October 5.)
WASHINGTON — Both intermodal and carload freight were up on U.S. railroads during September, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported today.
The last three weeks of September 2006 were the three highest-volume intermodal weeks in the history of U.S. railroading, as railroads originated 987,903 intermodal units during the month, up 50,543 trailers and containers (5.4 percent) from the same month last year. Carload volume also rose, totaling 1,352,159 units, up 4,366 carloads (0.3 percent) from September 2005.
Eleven of the 19 major commodity categories tracked by the AAR saw U.S. carload increases in September 2006 compared to September 2005. Intermodal traffic is not included in carload figures.
Commodities showing carload gains in September 2006 included coal (up 12,667 carloads, or 2.3 percent, to 569,005 carloads); metals and metal products (up 5,339 carloads, or 10.2 percent, to 57,675 carloads); and grain (up 4,457 carloads, or 5.2 percent, to 89,935 carloads).
Commodities showing carload decreases in September 2006 included motor vehicles and equipment (down 11,602 carloads, or 12.4 percent, to 82,144 carloads); nonmetallic minerals (down 5,081 carloads, or 16.3 percent, to 26,046 carloads), and stone, clay, and glass products (down 3,753 carloads, or 8.9 percent, to 38,607 carloads).
In the third quarter, total carloads on U.S. railroads rose 1.1 percent (48,271 carloads) to 4,346,112 carloads, led by coal (up 4.5 percent, or 78,072 carloads), metals and metal products (up 13.5 percent, or 22,192 carloads), and grain (up 5.6 percent, or 15,506 carloads). Carloads of motor vehicles and equipment fell 11.0 percent (28,947 carloads) in the third quarter; carloads of nonmetallic minerals were down 12.1 percent (12,167 carloads); and carloads of lumber and wood products were down 11.7 percent (8,922 carloads).
For the first nine months of 2006, total U.S. rail carloads were up 175,983 carloads (1.4 percent) to 13,136,203 carloads.
U.S. intermodal traffic was up 182,237 trailers and containers (6.1 percent) in the third quarter and was up 545,939 trailers and containers (6.3 percent) for the first nine months of 2006 to 9,203,475.
Total volume after 39 weeks was estimated at 1.3 trillion ton-miles, up 2.6 percent from 2005.
“An economy as diverse as ours is naturally stronger in some areas than in others, and the fact that freight railroads serve virtually every major sector is reflected in rail traffic figures,” noted AAR Vice President Craig F. Rockey. “The U.S. auto sector is not doing well right now, and that has depressed rail carloadings of automotive products. On the other hand, consumer spending still appears to be solid – a factor behind the record-setting intermodal traffic in September.”
Canadian rail carload traffic was down 1,045 carloads (0.3 percent) in September 2006 to 305,550 carloads, up 4,170 carloads (0.4 percent) in the third quarter, and down 32,598 carloads (1.1 percent) for the year to date to 2,909,928 carloads. In September, carload gains in grain (up 7,177 carloads, or 21.9 percent) and chemicals (up 2,660 carloads, or 4.7 percent), among other commodities, offset declines in carloads of motor vehicles and equipment (down 5,451 carloads, or 18.6 percent) and coal (down 5,012 carloads, or 14.9 percent), among others.
Canadian intermodal traffic was up 8,552 units (4.8 percent) in September 2006 compared with September 2005 to 187,769 units; up 31,651 units (5.6 percent) in the third quarter; and up 96,278 units (5.8 percent) for the first nine months of 2006 to 1,761,895 units.
Carloads carried on Kansas City Southern dé Mexico (formerly Transportación Ferroviaria Mexicana – TFM), a major Mexican railroad, were up 730 carloads (1.6 percent) in September 2006 to 46,817 carloads, while intermodal units carried totaled 18,858 units, up 2,283 units (13.8 percent). For the year-to-date, KCSM carloads carried were down 4.1 percent (18,866 carloads) to 441,081 carloads, while intermodal units carried were down 3.5 percent (5,615 units) to 155,627 trailers and containers.
For just the week ended September 30, the AAR reported the following totals for U.S. railroads: 345,299 carloads, up 2.4 percent (7,929 carloads) from the corresponding week in 2005, with loadings down 4.0 percent in the East and up 8.0 percent in the West; intermodal volume of 258,511 trailers and containers, up 4.9 percent (11,981 units) and the highest week on record; and total volume of an estimated 34.8 billion ton-miles, up 3.6 percent from the equivalent week last year.
For Canadian railroads during the week ended September 30, the AAR reported volume of 78,868 carloads, up 0.3 percent from last year; and 48,766 trailers and containers, up 6.6 percent from the corresponding week in 2005.
Combined cumulative rail volume for the first 39 weeks of 2006 on 13 reporting U.S. and Canadian railroads totaled 16,046,131 carloads, up 0.9 percent (143,385 carloads) from last year, and 10,965,370 trailers and containers, up 6.2 percent (642,217 units) from 2005’s first 39 weeks.