The AAR reports on the latest US and North American rail traffic

For the week ending 15 August 2020, total US weekly rail traffic was 500 563 carloads and intermodal units, down 6.9% compared with the same week last year.

Total carloads for the week amounted to 222 353 carloads, down 15.9% compared with the same week in 2019. Meanwhile, US weekly intermodal volume was 278 210 containers and trailers, up 1.9% compared to 2019.

Grain, one of the 10 carload commodity groups, posted an increase compared with the same week in 2019 – it was up 2791 carloads, to 22 582. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2019 included: coal (down 26 473 carloads, to 58 871); non-metallic minerals (down 7396 carloads to 30 437); and metallic ores and metals (down 4653 carloads to 18 998).

For the first 33 weeks of 2020, US railroads reported cumulative volume of 6.99 million carloads (down 16.2% from the same point last year), and 8.04 intermodal units (down 8.4% from last year). Total combined US traffic for the first 33 weeks of 2020 was 15.04 million carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 12.2% compared to last year.

North American rail volume for the week ending 15 August 2020, on 12 reporting US., Canadian, and Mexican railroads totalled 315 346 carloads (down 14% compared with the same week last year) and 364 630 intermodal units (down 1% compared with last year). Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 679 976 carloads and intermodal units (down 7.5%). North American rail volume for the first 33 weeks of 2020 was 20.73 million carloads and intermodal units (down 11.3% compared with 2019).

Canadian railroads reported 73,488 carloads for the week, down 9.6%, and 69,963 intermodal units, down 8.2% compared with the same week in 2019. For the first 33 weeks of 2020, Canadian railroads reported cumulative rail traffic volume of 4.57 million carloads, containers, and trailers (down 8.5%).

Mexican railroads reported 19 505 carloads for the week (down 7.7% compared with the same week last year) and 16 457 intermodal units (down 14.1%). Cumulative volume on Mexican railroads for the first 33 weeks of 2020 was 1.12 million carloads and intermodal containers and trailers (down 10.8% from the same point last year).