U.S. rail traffic kept building steam during the most recent reporting week, with carriers hauling a combined 535,663 carloads and intermodal units for the week ending Sept. 19, according to data from the Association of American Railroads (AAR). That compared with a total 4.9% higher than in the same week a year earlier.
Carload traffic increased 2.4% year over year to 234,207 units, and intermodal volume was even better, up 6.9% to 301,456 containers and trailers compared with the same week last year.
Industrial commodities again contributed heavily to the carload growth. The AAR tracks 10 commodity groups, seven of which were up from a year ago during the week. The biggest gainers were metallic ores and metals, up 15.1%. Petroleum and petroleum products were next with a 12.5% increase. Nonmetallic minerals, such as sand and stone, were up 7%.
U.S. Rail Traffic1
Week 37, 2026 – Ended September 19, 2026
| This Week | Year-To-Date | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cars | vs 2025 | Cumulative | Avg/wk2 | vs 2025 | |
| Total Carloads | 234,207 | 2.4% | 8,444,095 | 228,219 | 2.7% |
| Chemicals | 33,687 | 2.9% | 1,248,832 | 33,752 | 2.1% |
| Coal | 58,171 | -3.1% | 2,122,425 | 57,363 | -1.9% |
| Farm Products excl. Grain, and Food | 17,644 | 5.6% | 645,778 | 17,453 | 4.2% |
| Forest Products | 8,727 | 6.8% | 308,790 | 8,346 | 1.2% |
| Grain | 21,369 | -7.7% | 870,382 | 23,524 | 12.0% |
| Metallic Ores and Metals | 23,420 | 15.1% | 791,920 | 21,403 | 7.9% |
| Motor Vehicles and Parts | 16,636 | -0.8% | 574,074 | 15,516 | -0.9% |
| Nonmetallic Minerals | 33,629 | 7.0% | 1,135,504 | 30,689 | 2.4% |
| Petroleum and Petroleum Products | 11,976 | 12.5% | 409,544 | 11,069 | 7.6% |
| Other | 8,948 | 3.8% | 336,846 | 9,104 | 0.5% |
| Total Intermodal Units | 301,456 | 6.9% | 10,477,086 | 283,164 | 4.1% |
| Total Traffic | 535,663 | 4.9% | 18,921,181 | 511,383 | 3.4% |
1 Excludes U.S. operations of CPKC, CN and GMXT.
2 Average per week figures may not sum to totals as a result of independent rounding.
Not all commodity groups grew. Grain fell 7.7%, after a long stretch of weekly gains. Coal shipments also fell, down 3.1 percent. Motor vehicles and parts declined a more modest 0.8 percent.
U.S. railroads reported 8,444,095 carloads year to date for the first 37 weeks of 2026, an increase of 2.7% from the same period in 2025. The intermodal traffic totaled 10,477,086 units, 4.1% more than the same period last year.
For the first 37 weeks of the year, U.S. combined carload and intermodal traffic was 18,921,181 units, up 3.4%.
The nine reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads originated 340,379 carloads in North America during the week ending October 21, 2023, up 3.1 percent from the same week in 2025. Intermodal traffic rose 6% to 387,419 units.
North American railroads combined to move 727,798 carloads and intermodal units during the week, up 4.6% year over year.
Total North American rail volume for the first 37 weeks of 2026 was 25,944,601 carloads and intermodal units, up 3.1% compared with the same period of 2025.
