Total carloads for the week ended Feb. 22 were 232,869 carloads, down 9.3% compared with the same week in 2019, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 249,821 containers and trailers, down 6% compared to 2019. Even the recently surging Mexico saw its weekly carloads decline year-over-year. Four of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2019. They included commodities such as chemicals, up 2,366 carloads, to 33,284; petroleum and petroleum products, up 1,217 carloads, to 13,401; and motor vehicles and parts, up 1,193 carloads, to 17,898. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2019 included commodities such as coal, down 23,225 carloads, to 63,540; grain, down 2,785 carloads, to 18,909; and nonmetallic minerals, down 1,628 carloads, to 29,854. For the first eight weeks of 2020, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 1,858,165 carloads, down 6.5% from the same point last year; and 1,999,804 intermodal units, down 6.2% from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first eight weeks of 2020 was 3,857,969 carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 6.4% compared to last year. North American rail volume for the week ended Feb. 22, 2020, on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 329,343 carloads, down 6.7% compared with the same week last year, and 324,723 intermodal units, down 7.3% compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 654,066 carloads and intermodal units, down 7%. North American rail volume for the first eight weeks of 2020 was 5,278,276 carloads and intermodal units, down 4.7% compared with 2019. Canadian railroads reported 76,331 carloads for the week, up 1.9%, and 56,299 intermodal units, down 14.9% compared with the same week in 2019. For the first eight weeks of 2020, Canadian railroads reported cumulative rail traffic volume of 1,121,322 carloads, containers and trailers, down 1.7%. Mexican railroads reported 20,143 carloads for the week, down 6.4% compared with the same week last year, and 18,603 intermodal units, up 1.1%. Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first eight weeks of 2020 was 298,985 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, up 8.9% from the same point last year. The post Rail Traffic Down Across North America appeared first on Railway Age. Continue reading...
