U.S. Freight Rail Traffic declined 1.5% in Week 24 of 2025, as intermodal volumes dropped but carload shipments saw modest gains across several key commodities. This is reported by the railway transport news portal Railway Supply.

U.S. Freight Rail Traffic declined 1.5% in Week 24 of 2025, as intermodal volumes dropped but carload shipments saw modest gains across several key commodities

Railroads handled 485,810 carloads and intermodal units, according to the Association of American Railroads. Carloads rose 1% year over year to 224,851, while intermodal traffic dropped 3.5% to 260,959 containers and trailers.

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Coal led the growth, climbing 5.3% to 59,027 carloads. Grain volumes followed with a 3.2% increase, reaching 19,767 units. Farm products excluding grain and food grew 3.8% to 16,817 carloads.

However, not all sectors expanded. Petroleum and petroleum products fell 6.8% to 10,294 carloads. Miscellaneous freight dropped 7.8% to 8,714, and metallic ores and metals decreased 2.6% to 20,668 units.

U.S. Freight Rail Traffic Shows Mixed Weekly Commodity Trends

Despite the week’s overall dip, five of ten tracked commodity groups posted volume increases. Energy and agricultural sectors showed resilience, but industrial shipments remained under pressure.

In contrast, petroleum-related freight posted the steepest weekly decline. Metallic and miscellaneous commodities also weakened, reflecting challenges in broader manufacturing demand.

U.S. Freight Rail Traffic Sees Year-to-Date Growth Despite Weekly Decline

For the first 24 weeks of 2025, U.S. railroads moved 11.71 million carloads and intermodal units, marking a 4.2% increase compared to the same period last year.

Canadian railroads handled 3.91 million units, up 1%. Mexican railroads moved 563,446 combined units, but traffic dropped 9.1%, signaling persistent cross-border logistics hurdles.

Canadian weekly figures rose slightly: carloads by 0.6% to 90,981 and intermodal by 0.2% to 74,753. In Mexico, weekly carloads grew 0.9% to 16,529, but intermodal traffic declined 7.3% to 10,517 units.

The latest data suggests U.S. Freight Rail Traffic remains on a positive year-to-date trajectory, even as weekly volumes fluctuate across sectors.

Source: www.progressiverailroading.com

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