AAR reports mixed volumes for February 2012

The Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported that February carload and intermodal volumes were mixed.

February carloads—at 1,410,992—were down 1.9 percent annually. And intermodal—at 1,122,458 trailers and containers—was up 2.4 percent compared to February 2011. The AAR said that February’s weekly intermodal average of 224,492 units was the third highest ever in February for U.S. railroads.

“If you exclude carloads of coal and grain, which are down for reasons that have little to do with the state of the economy, rail traffic in February was encouraging,” said AAR Senior Vice President John T. Gray in a statement. “Intermodal traffic was up for the 27th straight month, while carloads of a wide range of commodities—lumber, chemicals, petroleum, paper, steel and more—saw increases in February. Time will tell, but we’re hopeful it’s a sign of broad-based improvement in economic conditions.” 

Of the 20 commodity categories tracked by the AAR, 14 were up in February. Motor vehicles and parts were up 22.1 percent, and petroleum and petroleum products were up 28.7 percent. Grain was down 7 percent and coal was off by 10.6 percent.

For the week ending March 3, the AAR said that carloads—at 283,312—were up 6.2 percent annually. Intermodal—at 227,256 trailers and containers—was up 6 percent.