U.S. railroads originated 1,701,997 carloads of freight in August 2006—an increase of 19,032 carloads (1.1 percent) over August 2005.

U.S. railroads also originated 1,247,653 intermodal units in August 2006, an increase of 73,154 trailers and containers (6.2 percent) over August 2005, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported yesterday.

Eight of the 19 major commodity categories tracked by the AAR saw U.S. carload increases in August 2006 compared to August 2005.

Commodities showing carload gains in August 2006 included:
• coal (up 42,295 carloads, or 6.3 percent, to 715,844 carloads);
• metals and metal products (up 8,765 carloads, or 13.6 percent, to 73,318 carloads);
• and grain (up 4,835 carloads, or 4.5 percent, to 112,390 carloads).

Commodities showing carload decreases in August 2006 included
• motor vehicles and equipment (down 13,351 carloads, or 12.0 percent, to 97,917 carloads);
• coke (down 6,305 carloads, or 20.6 percent, to 24,258 carloads);
• and nonmetallic minerals (down 5,630 carloads, or 13.6 percent, to 35,695 carloads).

For the first eight months of 2006, total U.S. rail carloads were up 171,617 carloads (1.5 percent) to 11,784,044 carloads. Year-over-year increases in coal (up 210,656 carloads, or 4.5 percent), and metals and metal products (up 43,701 carloads, or 9.5 percent, among other commodities, offset declines in nonmetallic minerals (down 51,408 carloads, or 19.4 percent) and motor vehicles and equipment (down 27,027 carloads, or 3.5 percent), among others.

"Rail traffic volumes reflect an economy that is growing at a moderate pace, but is a bit sticky in certain sectors," noted AAR Vice President Craig F. Rockey."Led by coal and intermodal, volume overall has significantly outpaced 2005 year-to-date, and railroads are working hard to serve the needs of their customers as safely, reliably, and efficiently as possible."