Intermodal Traffic Rises 3.7% for Week

U.S. intermodal traffic rose 3.7% for the week ended Saturday from a year ago, the Association of American Railroads reported.

Container traffic climbed 5.1% to 163,527 units, while trailer traffic declined 3.6% to 27,339 units.

Railroad carloads excluding intermodal rose 4% year-over-year to 265,304 units, AAR said in its weekly report.

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.