US freight railroads logged increased traffic in week 35

U.S. freight railroads hauled 533,545 carloads and intermodal units during the week ending Sep. 5, up 13.8% compared with traffic from the same week in 2025, according to Association of American Railroads data.

Carloads for the week totaled 234,397, up 8.9%, while weekly intermodal volume totaled 299,148 containers and trailers, up 18%.

Nine of the 10 carload commodity groups tracked by the AAR each week posted gains. They included metallic ores and metals, up 26.6% to 23,122; grain, up 24.1% to 22,509; and chemicals, up 12.9% to 33,653.

The one commodity group that posted a decrease was coal, which declined 5.8% to 58,037 carloads.

For the week, Canadian railroads reported 94,927 carloads, up 10.4%, and 72,202 intermodal units, up 8.9%. Mexican railroads posted 12,108 carloads, down 7.4%, and 14,729 intermodal units, up 10.1%.

For the first 35 weeks of 2026 compared with the same period in 2025:

• U.S. railroads posted 17,890,653 carloads and intermodal units, up 3.6%;
• Canadian railroads reported 5,759,324 carloads and intermodal units, up 1.5%; and
• Mexican railroads logged 890,474 carloads and intermodal units, up 7.7%.