[Stay on top of transportation news: .]
Intermodal Traffic Falls 1.1%
Rail intermodal traffic fell 1.1% for the week ended Saturday compared with the same week last year, the Association of American Railroads said.
Container traffic fell 2.2% to 184,269 units from a year ago, while trailer traffic rose 3.5% to 49,555 units, AAR said in its weekly rail traffic report Thursday.
Overall rail carload traffic dipped 0.1% for the week, to 331,199 carloads, the group said. A 21.3% rise in grain shipments offset an 18.7% drop in motor vehicles and equipment.
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.