Intermodal Traffic Rises in December
U.S. rail intermodal traffic increased 3.7% in December compared with the same month the prior year, the Association of American Railroads reported.
Railroads moved 1.2 million intermodal trailers and containers, AAR said Jan. 8 in its weekly report.
Rail carload volume, which excludes intermodal units, increased 8.9% in December year-over-year to 1.4 million carloads.
Fifteen of the 20 commodity groups AAR tracks increased over last year, led by coal at 7.5%.
Intermodal traffic for the week ended Jan. 3 dipped 0.7% to 185,675, compared with the same week last year, according to AAR.
Rail carload volume, which excludes intermodal units, increased 2.8% year-over-year to 446,201 carloads.
Seven of the 10 commodity groups AAR tracks increased over last year for the week, led by grain at 23.4%.
Full-year intermodal traffic increased 5.2% from the prior year. Railroads moved 13.5 million intermodal trailers and containers last year, AAR said.
“2014 was a challenging year for America’s freight railroads as they responded to traffic surges and shifts in traffic patterns,” John Gray, AAR senior vice president of policy and economics, said in a statement.
“This will be another busy year as the economy continues to grow and the nation’s railroads work to be responsive, flexible and efficient for their customers,” he added.
