Total U.S. weekly rail traffic came in at 511,194 carloads and intermodal units, a gain of 3.0% from the same week in 2024, according to the AAR. Total carloads were 227,327, up 2.4%, while intermodal volume was 283,867 containers and trailers, up 3.4% from 2024.
Results were similar for the week ending Aug. 2, 2025: U.S. Class I railroads carried 513,529 carloads and intermodal units, up 2.9% from the same point last year, according to the AAR. That comprised 233,805 carloads, up 6.4% from 2024, and 279,724 containers and trailers, up 0.2% from 2024.
For the week ending Aug. 9, 2025, seven of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2024. They included metallic ores and metals, up 1,825 carloads, to 21,247; grain, up 1,052 carloads, to 19,454; and coal, up 810 carloads, to 61,843. Commodity groups that posted declines were petroleum and petroleum products, down 232 carloads, to 10,092; chemicals, down 123 carloads, to 32,838; and farm products excluding grain, and food, down 33 carloads, to 16,161.
For the first 32 weeks of 2025, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 7,055,736 carloads, a 2.8% gain over the year-ago period; and 8,618,069 intermodal units, a 4.6% increase from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 32 weeks of this year came in at 15,673,805 carloads and intermodal units, up 3.8% from 2024.
In comparison, for the first 31 weeks of this year, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 6,828,409 carloads, up 2.8% from the same period in 2024; and 8,334,202 intermodal units, up 4.7% from 2024. Total combined traffic for this period was 15,162,611 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, up 3.8% from 2024.
North American rail volume for the week ending Aug. 9, 2025, on nine reporting U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads totaled 324,349 carloads, down 0.04% from the same week last year, and 371,325 intermodal units, up 5.3% from last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 695,674 carloads and intermodal units, up 2.7%. North American rail volume for the first 32 weeks of 2025 was 21,639,091 carloads and intermodal units, rising 2.9% from the same point last year.
Canadian railroads reported 84,689 carloads for the week ending Aug. 9. 2025, down 5.6%, and 74,518 intermodal units, up 11.4% from the same week last year. For the first 32 weeks of this year, they reported cumulative rail traffic volume of 5,194,861 carloads, containers, and trailers, up 1.6%.
For the week ending Aug. 9, 2025, Mexican railroads reported 12,333 carloads, dipping 3.2% from the same point last year, and 12,940 intermodal units, rising 14.5%. Their cumulative volume for the first 32 weeks of 2025 came in at 770,425 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, a 4.8% drop-off from the prior-year period.
