U.S. Class I railroads hauled 526,166 carloads and intermodal units for the week ending Dec. 14, 2024, the AAR reported Dec. 18. Total carloads came in at 228,400, dipping 2.4%, while intermodal volume was 297,766 containers and trailers, rising 11.1% from the same week in 2023.
Six of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2023. They included farm products excl. grain, and food, up 599 carloads, to 17,143; nonmetallic minerals, up 596 carloads, to 29,740; and chemicals, up 374 carloads, to 32,862. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2023 included coal, down 3,899 carloads, to 61,291; metallic ores and metals, down 2,444 carloads, to 18,770; and motor vehicles and parts, down 785 carloads, to 16,009.
For the first 50 weeks of this year, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 10,921,527 carloads, a 3.1% fall-off from the same point in 2023; and 13,343,447 intermodal units, a 9.2% gain over 2023. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 50 weeks of 2024 was 24,264,974 carloads and intermodal units, an increase of 3.3% from last year.
North American rail volume for the week ending Dec. 14, 2024, on nine reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 334,768 carloads, a drop-off of 4.0% compared with the same week last year, and 379,155 intermodal units, a gain of 7.0% compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America came in at 713,923 carloads and intermodal units, up 1.5%. North American rail volume for the first 50 weeks of 2024 was 33,629,011 carloads and intermodal units, up 2.2% from last year.
Canadian railroads reported 91,690 carloads for the week ending Dec. 14, 2024, down 5.9%, and 67,922 intermodal units, down 6.7% from the prior-year period. For the first 50 weeks of this year, they reported cumulative rail traffic volume of 7,927,769 carloads, containers and trailers, down 1.0%.
For the week ending Dec. 14, 2024, Mexican railroads reported 14,678 carloads, dropping 14.8% from the same week last year, and 13,467 intermodal units, decreasing 0.3%. Their cumulative volume for the first 50 weeks of 2024 was 1,436,268 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, rising 3.0% from the same point last year.
