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Rail, Intermodal Traffic Decline for Week
Intermodal rail traffic in the United States fell 25.8% last week from the same week a year ago, the Association of American Railroads said in its weekly report.
Total intermodal volume dropped to 175,813 units, from 236,877 last year. Containers fell 20.9% to 186,856 units, while trailer volume plunged 43.9% to 28,076 units.
Freight rail traffic, which excludes intermodal traffic fell 19.8% compared with last year to 263,349 carloads, AAR said.
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.
