Intermodal Traffic Rises for Week
Intermodal rail traffic continued its upward trend last week, the Association of American Railroads said Thursday.
Traffic totaled 223,075 trailers and containers, up 17.7% from a year ago but down 2.3% from the same week in 2008.
Containers rose 20.1% from a year ago to 190,023 units, while trailers gained 5.9% to 33,052 for the week ended Saturday, AAR said.
Freight rail traffic, which excludes intermodal traffic, rose 10.5% to 288,973 carloads, the group 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.
