Carload volume—at 288,791—was down 4.4 percent annually, and intermodal volumes—at 253,883 trailers and containers—were up 3.5 percent annually.

CSX and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania this week heralded the midway point of progress on the first phase of projects for the National Gateway.

Carload volume—at 285,089—was down 6.1 percent compared to the same week a year ago, and intermodal volumes—at 250,826 trailers and containers—were up 2.6 percent annually.

NS officials said the $97.5 million facility is part of the $2.5 billion Crescent Corridor initiative, which aims to establish an efficient, high-capacity intermodal freight rail route between the Gulf Coast and the Northeast. This facility is located on a 316-acre site in McCalla, Alabama.

Leading off third quarter earnings results for Class I railroads, CSX last night reported net earnings of $455 million, which was down 2 percent annually and $0.44 per share, which fell short of Wall Street estimates of $0.47 and ahead of last year’s $0.43.

Pricing on the truckload and intermodal fronts was largely flat on an annual basis, according to the September edition of the Truckload and Intermodal Cost Indexes from Cass Information Systems and Avondale Partners.

September carloads—at 1,152,174—were down 3.7 percent—or 43,746 carloads— annually. Intermodal—at 973,715 trailers and containers—was up 2.5 percent—or 24,126 trailers and containers—compared to September 2011.

The U.S. railroad industry, consisting of over 600 large and small service providers, has successfully engineered itself into a viable and largely profitable segment of the nation’s logistics marketplace.

Carload volume—at 292,644—was down 4.1 percent, and intermodal volumes—at 250,253 trailers and containers—were up 0.7 percent.

Carload volume—at 291,350—was down 2.9 percent annually, and intermodal—at 251,720 trailers and containers—were up 3.9 percent.