WASHINGTON — Weekly U.S. rail traffic again showed a slight drop for the week ending Nov. 4, the second straight week in which a slump in carload traffic led to an overall decline.
According to statistics from the Association of American Railroads, overall traffic was 484,757 carloads and intermodal units, down 1.7% from the corresponding week in 2022. That included 224,415 carloads, down 5.2% from the same week a year ago, and 260,342 containers and trainers, up 1.5%.
A week earlier, overall traffic had been down 1.2%, mostly because of a 4.2% decline in carload traffic [see “U.S. rail traffic sees notable increase in October,” Trains News Wire, Nov. 2, 2023].
Year-to-date totals, through 44 weeks of 2023, have carload traffic up 0.1% and intermodal traffic down 7% for a total traffic decline of 3.7% compared to 2022.
North American totals for the week, from 12 reporting, U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads, included 337,189 carloads, down 2% from the same week in 2022, and 339,433 intermodal units, down 0.5%. The total of 676,622 carloads and intermodal units represented a 1.2% drop. Through 44 weeks, North American traffic is down 3.4% compared to the same period in 2022.
