Intermodal Traffic Falls for Week
Rail and intermodal traffic fell sharply last week from the same weekÌýa year ago, the Association of American Railroads said Thursday.
Intermodal traffic for the week ended Saturday fell 6.3%, led by an 11.2% drop in trailer traffic to 48,658 units, AAR said. Containers fell 4.9% to 179,974 units.
Overall rail traffic fell 8.4% to 314,433 carloads, and AAR estimated total volume at 33.5 billion ton-miles, down 7.2% from the same week last year.
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.