WASHINGTON — Weekly U.S. rail traffic figures remain below 2021 levels, although the degree of decline continues to vary significantly from week to week.
Statistics from the Association of American Railroads, for the week ending May 14, show overall traffic down 5.4% compared to the corresponding week a year earlier. This follows a 3.5% decline for the week ending May 7, a 6.3% drop for the week ending April 30, and a 7.4% slide for the week ending April 23.
For the week, U.S. railroads handled 505,120 carloads and intermodal units. The 230,128 carloads represented a 5.2% drop, and included declines in seven of 10 commodity categories. The 274,992 trailers and containers are a drop of 5.5%.
Through 19 weeks of 2022, overall traffic is down 3.5%, and is averaging 493,161 carloads and intermodal units. Intermodal traffic is down 6.9%, while carload traffic remains 0.6% ahead of 2021.
North American totals for the week, for statistics from 12 U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads, show 325,431 carloads, 367,153 intermodal units, 692,584 total carloads and intermodal units — a decline of 4.2% for all three figures. Year-to-date totals have overall traffic down 3.9%.
