Intermodal Traffic Drops for Week
Rail traffic rose slightly, but intermodal traffic continued a downward trend in falling for the week ended Saturday from the same week last year, the Association of American Railroads said.
Rail intermodal volume fell 3.5% year-over-year to 241,360 trailers and containers, AAR said in its weekly report Thursday.
Container volume dipped 2% to 187,359 units, while trailer volume fell 8.4% to 54,001 units.
Overall rail carload traffic totaled 338,508 carloads, up 0.5% from a year ago, the group said.
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.