For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 507,381 carloads and intermodal units, down 8.6% compared with the same week last year.
Total carloads for the week ending Oct. 19 were 245,002 carloads, down 7.8% compared with the same week in 2018, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 262,379 containers and trailers, down 9.3% compared to 2018.
Two of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2018. They were chemicals, up 954 carloads, to 31,720; and petroleum and petroleum products, up 757 carloads, to 12,718. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2018 included coal, down 10,991 carloads, to 75,083; metallic ores and metals, down 3,640 carloads, to 19,706; and motor vehicles and parts, down 2,456 carloads, to 14,749.
For the first 42 weeks of 2019, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 10,600,083 carloads, down 4.1% from the same point last year; and 11,187,351 intermodal units, down 4.3% from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 42 weeks of 2019 was 21,787,434 carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 4.2% compared to last year.
North American rail volume for the week ending Oct. 19, on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads totaled 342,960 carloads, down 8.4% compared with the same week last year, and 349,837 intermodal units, down 8.1% compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 692,797 carloads and intermodal units, down 8.2%. North American rail volume for the first 42 weeks of 2019 was 29,744,541 carloads and intermodal units, down 3.1% compared with 2018.
Canadian railroads reported 78,199 carloads for the week, down 10.5%, and 68,414 intermodal units, down 4.6% compared with the same week in 2018. For the first 42 weeks of 2019, Canadian railroads reported cumulative rail traffic volume of 6,370,915 carloads, containers and trailers, up 0.9%.
Mexican railroads reported 19,759 carloads for the week, down 7.2% compared with the same week last year, and 19,044 intermodal units, down 2.5%. Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first 42 weeks of 2019 was 1,586,192 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, down 2.8% from the same point last year.
— From an Association of American Railroads news release. Oct. 23, 2019
My paper boy reports that after running away half his customers and raising rates on the remaining half his deliveries have also plummeted more than 8 percent for the week of October 19.
And not to be forgotten is the surge that happened last year on IM to beat the expected tariffs.
So, just curious… I’d like to see numbers on how much is due to a slowing economy, and how much is due to discontinued lanes/psr/rate hikes