by Calculated Risk on 2/04/2022 02:46:00 PM
Friday, February 04, 2022
AAR: January Rail Carloads and Intermodal Down Year-over-year
From the Association of American Railroads (AAR) Rail Time Indicators. Graphs and excerpts reprinted with permission.
U.S. railroads originated 902,265 total carloads in January 2022, down 3.0% (27,861 carloads) from January 2021. It’s the fewest carloads for the first four weeks of a year since sometime before 1988, when our data begin. ...Click on graph for larger image.
U.S. intermodal volume was 1.00 million units in January 2022, down 14.6% from last year, but January 2021 was the second best month ever for intermodal.
emphasis added
This graph from the Rail Time Indicators report shows the six-week average of U.S. Carloads in 2019, 2020 and 2021:
U.S. railroads originated 902,265 total carloads in January 2022, down 3.0% (27,861 carloads) from January 2021 and the fewest for the first four weeks of a year since sometime before 1988, when our data begin. ... Carloads excluding coal fell 6.0% in January 2022 from last year, their biggest year-over-year decline since February 2021 and, before that, August 2020.The second graph shows the six-week average (not monthly) of U.S. intermodal in 2019, 2020 and 2021: (using intermodal or shipping containers):
U.S. intermodal originations totaled 1.00 million units in January 2022, down 14.6% (171,796 units) from January 2021. As with some carload commodities, the comparisons for intermodal were tough: January 2021 was the second highest volume month ever for U.S. intermodal, fractionally behind April 2021. January 2022 was the fifth best January ever for intermodal.