AAR: Total Weekly Traffic Near 2020 Levels
For week 6, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was virtually on par with the comparable week in 2020, according to the Association of American Railroads’ Feb. 17 report.
AAR
KCS COO to Headline AAR Virtual Research Review
The 26th annual event will feature projects driving innovation and the implementation of advanced technology to improve North American railroad operations.
Commentary
Don’t Dismiss Freight Rail Electrification
Alternate research suggests that it is too early to walk away from the electrification discussion.
AAR: Carload Gain Lies Mainly in the Grain
In January, U.S. intermodal shipments and carloads of chemicals set new records, and grain was up 40%, its “biggest-ever” year-over-year increase, Association of American Railroads (AAR) Senior Vice President John T. Gray reported on Feb. 3. Total carloads (930,303) were the highest they have been in a year, he added—an encouraging sign.
FRA OKs PTC RFA Process
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is allowing certain railroads to use an alternative request for amendment (RFA) process rather than the existing 49
CFR § 236.1021 process before making “certain material modifications to an FRA-certified Interoperable Train Control (ITC) positive train control (PTC) system or its accompanying PTC Safety Plan (PTCSP),” the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) reported.
AAR: Intermodal Lifts Total Traffic as Carloads Play Catch-up
An intermodal gain approaching a whopping 20% coupled to a modest decrease in carload traffic, compared to 2020, drove a rail freight traffic increase of nearly 10% for Week 3 of 2021, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported on Jan. 27.
AAR to Biden-Harris: We ‘Stand Ready to Work’
Joseph Biden and Kamala Harris were sworn in on Jan. 20 as the 46th President and the first woman Vice President of the United States, respectively. The Association of American Railroads (AAR) has extended its support.
AAR: Intermodal Strength Again Boosts Weekly Rail Traffic
Total U.S. rail traffic was 528,547 carloads and intermodal units for the week ending Jan. 16, 2021—up 5.8% compared with the same week last year, building upon intermodal’s continued strength, the Association of American Railroads reported on Jan. 20..
AAR: Intermodal Double-Digit Gains Continue
For the week ending Jan. 9, 2021, total U.S. rail traffic was 525,253 carloads and intermodal units—up 4.7% from the comparable week of 2020, ending Jan. 11—based on a double-digit intermodal gain, according to an Association of American Railroads (AAR) Jan. 13 report. Total carloads of 235,404 fell 1.6% vs. the comparable week in 2020, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume of 289,849 containers and trailers rose 10.4% vs. 2020.
AAR: ‘Railroads Looking to the Future’
U.S. rail traffic by the end of the 2020 reporting year was “close to pre-pandemic levels, sparked by sharply higher grain and intermodal shipments along with the reopening of auto assembly plants,” Association of American Railroads (AAR) Senior Vice President John T. Gray said on Jan. 6.