The Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported this week increased US rail traffic for January 2015, with both carload and intermodal volume increasing compared with January 2014.
For the first month of 2015, combined US carload and intermodal originations were 2,165,909 units, up 70,522 or 3.4 percent over January 2014. The average of 541,477 combined units per week in January 2015 was the second highest for a January on record, behind only January 2006.
US freight railroads originated 1,160,842 carloads in January 2015, up 5.6 percent or 61,864 carloads over January 2014. Total carloads averaged 290,211 per week in January 2015, the most for January since 2008. For intermodal containers and trailers, US railroads originated 1,005,067 units in January 2015, up 8,658 units or 0.9 percent over January 2014, and an average of 251,267 units per week, which is the highest weekly average for January in rail industry history.
In January 2015, 18 of the 20 carload commodity categories the AAR tracks saw carload gains compared with January 2014. Commodities with the biggest carload increases were coal, which was up by 19,078 carloads, or 4.4 percent over last year; crushed stone, gravel and sand, up 14,922 carloads, or 22.1 percent; grain, up 8,955 carloads, or 10.4 percent; chemicals, up 4,673 carloads, or 4 percent; and petroleum and petroleum products, up 3,981 carloads or 6.9 percent.
Excluding coal, carloads were up 42,786 carloads, or 6.4 percent in January 2015 over January 2014. Excluding coal and grain, US rail carloads were up 33,831 carloads, or 5.8 percent in January 2015.
"January was a good start to the year for US railroads, helped by the fact that the winter so far this year hasn't been nearly as bad as it was last year," said AAR Senior Vice President John T. Gray. "The AAR recently estimated that US railroads spent a record $27 billion on capital spending and maintenance expenses in 2014, and we're projecting $29 billion in 2015. This massive spending is making it possible for railroads to move their customers' freight more efficiently and reliably and steadily recover from 2014's service issues."