Weekly U.S. rail traffic again shows increase

Weekly U.S. rail traffic again shows increase

By Trains Staff | October 12, 2023

| Last updated on February 2, 2024


Freight volume shows increase for fourth straight week

Weekly table showing U.S. carload traffic by commodity type, plus overall intermodal traffic
Association of American Railroads

WASHINGTON — Weekly U.S. rail traffic continued its recent upward trend, with traffic for the week ending Oct. 7 showing a 3% increase over the same week in 2022, according to statistics from the Association of American Railroads. It was the fourth straight week traffic has been ahead of weekly figures of a year ago.

Weekly volume was 499,217 carloads and intermodal units. That included 233,768 carloads, up 3.6%, with seven of 10 commodity groups showing increases. Intermodal traffic included 265,449 containers and trailers, up 2.5%.

Year-to-date totals, through 40 weeks of 2023, show carload traffic up 0.4% and intermodal traffic down 7.9%, for an overall decrease of 4.1%.

North American totals for the week, for 12 reporting U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads, include 246,637 carloads, up 2.6%, and 349,627 intermodal units, down 1.5% compared to the corresponding week in 2022. The overall total of 696,264 carloads and intermodal units represents a 0.5% increase over the same week a year ago. For the year to date, North American volume is down 3.65 compared to the first 40 weeks of 2022.

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