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5/15/2025
Rail News: Rail Industry Trends
U.S. freight rail traffic rises 5.7% in Week 19

U.S. freight railroads logged 495,552 carloads and intermodal units in the week ending May 10, a 5.7% increase compared with traffic in the same week a year ago, according to Association of American Railroads (AAR) data.
Carloads totaled 222,238 for the week, up 6.2%, while intermodal volume reached 273,314 containers and trailers, a 5.4% increase.
Six of the 10 carload commodity groups that AAR tracks every week posted increases. They included coal, up 20.9% to 56,488 carloads; grain, up 19.9% to 20,661; and nonmetallic minerals, up 3.8% to 32,661.
Commodities that posted decreases included metallic ores and metals, down 10.1% to 18,501 carloads; chemicals, down 2.2% to 32,329; and petroleum and petroleum products, down 6% to 10,342.
Meanwhile, Canadian railroads logged 94,378 carloads for the week, down 0.3%, and 79,891 intermodal units, up 8.6%. Mexican railroads posted 15,479 carloads, up 24.6%, and 10,074 intermodal units, no change from the same period last year.
For the first 19 weeks of 2025 compared with the same period in 2024:
• U.S. railroads reported cumulative rail traffic of 9,301,159 carloads and intermodal units, up 5.2%;
• Canadian railroads posted 3,077,297 carloads, containers and trailers, up 0.4%.
• Mexican railroads reported 454,800 carloads and intermodal units, down 7.9%.
Contact Progressive Railroading editorial staff.