Intermodal Rail Volume Rises 4% for Week
Intermodal rail volume for the week ended Oct. 19 rose 4.3% from the same period last year, the 16th consecutive rise, the Association of American Railroads reported.
Traffic increased to 264,687 trailers and containers, AAR said in its weekly report.
Rail carload traffic rose 0.2% to 289,256 year-over-year, the rail trade group said.
Eight of the 10 carload commodity groups tracked by AAR posted increases, led by petroleum and petroleum products, which increased 15.5%. Commodities showing a decrease included coal, which fell 6%.
For the first 42 weeks of the year, U.S. railroads moved 10.3 million intermodal containers and trailers, up 3.7% from last year. Carload traffic dipped 0.9% to 11.8 million units.
Total North American rail volume year-to-date for the 13 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 15.7 million carloads, unchanged with the same point last year.
Norfolk Southern reported its third-quarter intermodal revenue rose 7% to $605 million. The eastern U.S. freight railroad said its net income increased to $482 million, or $1.53 per share, from $402 million, or $1.24, a year ago. Revenue increased 5% to $2.8 billion.
“Norfolk Southern delivered strong results, led by growth in our chemicals, metals/construction, intermodal and automotive businesses, combined with ongoing productivity improvements,” CEO Wick Moorman said in a statement.
