AAR Week 50: Traffic Gains Based on Intermodal Strength

While intermodal growth continues to lift U.S. weekly rail traffic figures in 2020, carloads are inching closer to what railroads reported in 2019. For the week ending Dec. 12, 2020, total U.S. weekly traffic was 546,209 carloads and intermodal units, up 4.9% compared with the same week last year, reported the Association of American Railroads (AAR) on Dec. 16. Total carloads were 238,193, down just 2.2%, and intermodal volume was 308,016 containers and trailers, up 11.1%, compared with 2019.

AAR: Another Double-Digit Gain for Intermodal

For the week ending Dec. 5, 2020, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 542,203 carloads and intermodal units—up 4.8% from the same period last year—based on a double-digit intermodal gain, according to an Association of American Railroads (AAR) Dec. 9 report. Total carloads were 244,986, down 1.4% compared with the same period in 2019, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume of 297,217 containers and trailers increased 10.5% compared with 2019.

AAR: November Rail Traffic ‘Making Up Lost Ground’

In November, U.S. rail traffic “continued to make up lost ground,” with U.S. intermodal volumes at “near record highs” for the second consecutive month, Association of American Railroads (AAR) Senior Vice President John T. Gray reported on Dec. 2.

AAR Week 47: Intermodal Continues to Drive Growth

Total U.S. rail traffic of 534,607 carloads and intermodal units for the week ending Nov. 21, 2020, kept pace with the same week last year, rising 2.5%, based on a double-digit intermodal gain, according to a Nov. 25 report from the Association of American Railroads (AAR). Total carloads were down 7.2% to 233,478, compared with the same week in 2019, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was up 11.5% to 301,129 containers and trailers, compared with 2019.

For House Rail Subcommittee, an Earful on Multiple Matters

“Examining the Surface Transportation Board’s Role in Ensuring a Robust Passenger Rail System” was the topic of a virtual Nov. 18 hearing before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials.

Intermodal Registers Double-Digit Gain: AAR

For the week ending Nov. 14, 2020, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 527,462 carloads and intermodal units, up 5.2% compared with the same week last year, based on a double-digit intermodal gain, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported on Nov. 18. Total carloads were 232,146, down 3.1% compared with the same week in 2019, but U.S. weekly intermodal volume, at 295,316 containers and trailers, rose 12.9% compared to 2019.

AAR Week 45: Intermodal Offsets Carloads, Again

For the week ending Nov. 7, 2020, a significant gain in intermodal once again surpassed a decline in carloads as the pandemic continued. U.S. rail traffic—522,028 carloads and intermodal units—rose 1.3% compared with the same week last year, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported Nov. 11.

AAR: Intermodal’s Upward Trend Continues

October was the “the best month ever” for U.S. rail intermodal, with volumes up by one-third from April—“a stunning increase in six months,” Association of American Railroads Senior Vice President John T. Gray said on Nov. 4. Intermodal again offset carload declines, as U.S. rail traffic for the month—2,082,646 carloads and intermodal units—rose 2.0%, compared with the same month last year. Also positive: Carloads rose for 10 of the 20 categories AAR tracks, “the most since the pandemic began,” Gray noted.

Component Tracking: Greater Visibility

RAILWAY AGE, NOVEMBER 2020 ISSUE: Identifying railcar components and tracking their health is critical to the safe and efficient operation of North America’s freight railroads. In an industry with about 1.6 million revenue-earning cars, annual equipment maintenance spending might approach $2 billion. The benefits of more efficient component tracking and equipment-health analysis are potentially significant.

AAR Week 43: Once Again, It’s Intermodal

The trend continues: Intermodal gains once again offset carload declines, as U.S. rail traffic for the week ending Oct. 24, 2020—522,653 carloads and intermodal units—rose 1.9% compared with the same week last year, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported Oct. 28.

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