Railroad shipping: AAR says carload is up and intermodal is down for July

Jeff Berman, Group News Editor -- Logistics Management, 8/8/2008

WASHINGTON—Railroad carload and intermodal volumes were mixed in July, continuing a six-month trend in which monthly totals have been down or mixed, according to data released by the Association of American Railroads (AAR).

In July, U.S. railroads originated 1,606,877 carloads of freight, which was up 1.1 percent—or 16,825 carloads—from July 2007, according to the AAR. Intermodal loadings at 1,125,795 intermodal trailers or containers were down 2.2 percent—or 25,645 loadings—for the month.

Although freight was mixed, there is some reason for optimism on the rails based on strong monthly performances of certain commodities.

Of the 19 commodities tracked by the AAR, seven were up year-over-year in July compared to the same timeframe last year. Coal and grain were up 4.3 percent and 7.2 percent, respectively. On the other end were motor vehicles and equipment down 22.2 percent and lumber and wood products down 17.1 percent.

“We are still in some difficult times, but railroads seem to be holding their own,” said AAR Director of Editorial Services Tom White in an interview. “Grain and coal have both been strong, which has helped a great deal and helped bring up the carload figures.”

White added that metallic ore loadings—up 10.6 percent over the first 31 weeks of 2008—have also been solid throughout this year.

Part of that growth in both cases is related to the export business, explained White. And that is a main reason why total volume for the first 31 weeks of 2008 is up 1.6 percent at 1.04 trillion ton-miles.

According to AAR data total U.S. rail carloads were up 0.4 percent—36,575 carloads—to 10,058,613 carloads. Intermodal traffic, which is not included in carload figures, was down 3.1 percent—or 217,003 trailers and containers—to 6,886,812 units for the same timeframe.

Although intermodal is down, White pointed out that it is interesting to note that intermodal trailer units were up 1.8 percent in July, which relates to higher fuel prices and a greater use or rail via intermodal trucking partners. He also said that it is a reflection of the majority of rail lines, especially short lines, having sufficiently recovered from the Midwest flooding from earlier this summer. 

“The intermodal trailer component has been dropping over the years, so this is a bit of a reversal,” said White.