Rail traffic showed steady gains for the week ending May 28, says AAR

Rail traffic showed steady gains for the week ending May 28, according to data released by the Association of American Railroads (AAR).

Carload volume—at 288,049—was up 0.7 percent compared to the same timeframe last year and is behind the week ending May 21 at 295,148 and the week ending May 14 at 294,271. It was also behind the week ending April 2, which hit 305,905 carloads, marking the highest weekly carload tally since the end of 2008.

Carload volume was up 0.7 percent in the East and up 0.7 percent out West. Carloads on a year-to-date basis are at 6,110,554 for a 3.2 percent annual gain.

Intermodal volume—at 234,668 trailers and containers—was up 4.2 percent from last year. This was slightly ahead of the week ending May 21 at 234,235. Intermodal volumes are being boosted in part by modal shifts by carriers looking for financial relief from increasing fuel prices.

As LM has reported, truckload carriers and shippers are moving more freight via intermodal, even though it typically adds at least a day or two to transit times.

Of the 20 commodity groups tracked by the AAR, seven were up annually. Grain was up 18.5 percent, and metallic ores were up 48.9 percent. Primary forest products were down 23.1 percent.

Estimated ton-miles for the week were 31.9 billion for a 1.3 percent annual increase, and on a year-to-date basis, the 684.2 billion ton-miles recorded are up 4.3 percent.