WASHINGTON — Total U.S. weekly rail traffic was down 13.2% last week compared with the same week last year, the Association of American Railroads reported today.
Total carloads for the week ending Jan. 20 were down 22.4% compared with the same week in 2023, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was down 4.5% compared to 2023. None of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2023.
For the first three weeks of 2024, U.S. railroads reported cumulative carload volume down 10.8% from the same point last yearm while intermodal was up 0.2% from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first three weeks of 2024 was down 5.3% compared to last year.
North American carload volume for the week ending Jan 20, 2024, on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads was down 20.3% compared with the same week last year. Intermodal traffic declined 6% compared to last year. North American rail volume for the first three weeks of 2024 was 1,778,528 carloads and intermodal units, down 5.6% compared with 2023.
Canadian railroads reported 74,967 carloads for the week, down 21.5%, and 54,327 intermodal units, down 15.6% compared with the same week in 2023. For the first three weeks of 2024, Canadian railroads reported cumulative rail traffic was down 9.8%.
Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first three weeks of 2024 was up 17.7% from the same point last year.
