WASHINGTON — Once again carried by intermodal traffic, weekly U.S. rail volume remained above 2023 levels for the ninth straight week, according to statistics from the Association of American Railroads.
For the week ending March 23, total traffic was 470,593 carloads and intermodal units, up 2.1% compared to the corresponding week a year earlier. The overall figure included 215,277 carloads, down 6.1%, and 255,316 containers and trailers, up 10.2%.
Year-to-date figures, through 12 weeks of 2024, show carload traffic down 4.3% while intermodal traffic is up 9.1%, for an overall volume increase of 2.5%.
North American figures, from 10 reporting U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads, included 324,001 carloads, down 5.3% from the same week in 2023, and 340,799 intermodal units, up 9.4%. The total of 664,800 carloads and intermodal units represents a 1.7% increase. Through 12 weeks of 2024, North American traffic is up 1.8%. Canadian year-to-date traffic is down 0.9%, while Mexico’s year-to-date total is up 6.6%.
Too many variables. What is predicted time to clear channel. First stabilize containers on ship, Any haz mat containers on ship and in water. Weather, salvage, political grandstanding. Removing all debris from channel + any that washes up to debris and piles up. tides especially king tides.
Then embargoes already announced to port destinations, moving loaded ships cargo back onto trains. Enough train crews to handle some route’s overloads. Goes on and on.
This week and more so next week figures will be skewed by the Baltimore mess.
Would you suspect that the unloaded cans and those waiting to be loaded will need to be railed to another port? I’ve been to Jacksonville’s port. They can handle RORO and Bulk.