WASHINGTON — Weekly U.S. rail traffic remained ahead of 2023 levels for the week ending Sept. 28, 2024, although the gain was the smallest in more than two months.
According to statistics from the Association of American Railroads, total volume for the week was 507,537 carloads and intermodal units, a 1.6% increase over the corresponding week in 2023. It was the first time since the week ending July 20, when the increase was just 1.4%, that weekly volume had shown less than a 5% gain over previous-year figures.
The latest figures include 227,046 carloads, a 3.5% decline from the same week in 2023, and 280,491 containers and trailers, up 6.2% from the corresponding week a year ago.
Year-to-date figures, through 39 weeks of 2024, include a 3.3% decline in carload volume and a 9.5% increase in intermodal units. Overall traffic is up 3.3% compared to the same period in 2023.
North American volume for the week, from nine reporting U.S, Canadian, and Mexican railroads, includes 338,087 carloads, down 3.6% from the same week a year ago, and 362,754 intermodal units, up 4.2%. The overall volume of 700,841 carloads and intermodal units is a 0.3% gain from a year ago. North American year-to-date volume, through 39 weeks, is up 2.5%. That includes a 0.1% gain in Canada and a 3.9% year-to-date gain in Mexico.
