WASHINGTON — Weekly U.S. rail traffic showed another significant drop for the week ending Sept. 24, according to statistics from the Association of American Railroads.
Total volume for the week was 489,111 carloads and intermodal units, a 4.4% decrease from the same week in 2021. Since the figures for the week ending Sept. 3 showed a 3.7% increase over prior year levels [see “U.S. rail traffic up slightly in August …,” Trains News Wire, Sept. 8, 2022], the weekly figures have showed declines of 0.9, 2.9, and now 4.4%.
The latest figure includes 231,258 carloads, down 3.2% from the corresponding week in 2021, and 257,843 containers and trailers, down 5.4%.
Year-to-date figures, through 38 weeks of 2022, show carload traffic up 0.2% and intermodal traffic down 5.1% for an overall decrease of 2.7%, with an average weekly volume of 494,289 carloads and intermodal units.
North American totals for the week, for 12 reporting U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads, include 333,265 carloads, down 1.3%, and 342,019 intermodal units, down 4.3%. The total of 675,284 carloads and intermodal units represents a 2.8% decrease. Year-to-date North American total volume is down 2.4% compared to the same point in 2021.
