WASHINGTON — Overall rail traffic was down slightly in October compared to the same month in 2022, while traffic for the week ending Oct. 29 showed a slight increase, according to the Association of American Railroads.
Monthly totals had combined U.S. carload and intermodal traffic down 0.5% compared to October 2021,with carload traffic up 0.5% and intermodal volume down 1.4%. Seven of 20 carload commodities showed increases, led by coal, up 14,937 carloads, or 5.8%; crushed stone, sand, and gravel, up 8,615 carloads or 10.7%; and motor vehicles and parts, up 5,998 carloads or 11.4%.
“October is usually one of the highest-volume months of the year for rail carloads, and it’s the top month so far this year,” AAR Senior Vice President John T. Gray said in a press release. “Carloads of grain surged upward as U.S. producers sought alternatives to the Mississippi River constraints while motor vehicles had one of their better months since pre-pandemic times. Carloads of chemicals were down in part because of high natural gas feedstock prices. U.S. intermodal volumes remained subdued in October thanks largely to high inventories at many retailers, lower port volumes and still-scarce warehouse capacity for many rail intermodal customers.”
Year-to-date totals through 10 months of 2022 have carload traffic up 0.1%, intermodal traffic down 4.8%, and overall volume down 2.5%.
Weekly figures show increase
For the week, total U.S. rail traffic was 514,457 carloads and intermodal units, a 0.8% increase over the same week in 2021. That includes 244,425 carloads, up 2.6%, and 270,032 containers and trailers, down 0.7%.
North American totals for the week ending Oct. 29, for 12 reporting U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads, included 347,651 carloads, a 2.2% increase over the corresponding week in 2021; 355,130 intermodal units, a 0.9% decrease, and a total of 702,781 carloads and intermodal units, a 0.6% increase. For the year to date, total North American volume is down 2% after 43 weeks compared to a year ago.
