The Association of American Railroads (AAR) today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending August 22, 2020. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 514,914 carloads and intermodal units, down 3.3 percent compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week ending August 22 were 229,828 carloads, down 12 percent compared with the same week in 2019, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 285,086 containers and trailers, up 5 percent compared to 2019. Two of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2019. They were grain, up 1,489 carloads, to 22,530; and farm products excl. grain, and food, up 705 carloads, to 15,951. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2019 included coal, down 16,929 carloads, to 64,500; nonmetallic minerals, down 8,464 carloads, to 30,294; and metallic ores and metals, down 2,467 carloads, to 18,981.
For the first 34 weeks of 2020, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 7,222,554 carloads, down 16 percent from the same point last year; and 8,327,873 intermodal units, down 8 percent from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 34 weeks of 2020 was 15,550,427 carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 11.9 percent compared to last year.
North American rail volume for the week ending August 22, 2020, on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 320,649 carloads, down 12.5 percent compared with the same week last year, and 371,003 intermodal units, up 2.4 percent compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 691,652 carloads and intermodal units, down 5.1 percent. North American rail volume for the first 34 weeks of 2020 was 21,420,948 carloads and intermodal units, down 11.2 percent compared with 2019.
Canadian railroads reported 71,766 carloads for the week, down 14.2 percent, and 68,970 intermodal units, down 5.8 percent compared with the same week in 2019. For the first 34 weeks of 2020, Canadian railroads reported cumulative rail traffic volume of 4,713,185 carloads, containers and trailers, down 8.6 percent.
Mexican railroads reported 19,055 carloads for the week, down 12 percent compared with the same week last year, and 16,947 intermodal units, down 2.9 percent. Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first 34 weeks of 2020 was 1,157,336 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, down 10.7 percent from the same point last year.
-via Press Release