June 24, 2005 8:00 AM, EDT

Rail, Intermodal Volume Gain for Week

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ail freight traffic increased for the week ended June 18 compared with the same week last year, and intermodal volume also rose, the Association of American Railroads said.

The gain turned around the previous week’s decline and was the third increase in the past six weeks, according to AAR data.

Intermodal volume rose 2.4%, the rail trade group said in its weekly report. Container volume rose 4.2% to 170,131 units while intermodal trailer levels fell 2.7% to 55,600 units.

Total rail volume rose 0.9% to 333,264 car loads for the week over the same week last year, AAR said.

AAR estimated total revenue ton-miles for the week at 31.8 billion, up 1.9% from last year.

Railroad volume is considered an important economic indicator. Intermodal traffic, which tends to be higher-valued merchandise than bulk commodities, uses trains for the long haul and trucks for the shorter distance at either end of the trip.