According to the AAR Weekly Rail Summary released October 3, 2013 both intermodal and carload volume for September 2012 was up compared to September of last year Intermodal volume was up 4.4 percent, and the weekly average of 256,881 intermodal units in September was the second highest monthly average of any month in history. The Labor Day holiday was the only thing that kept September from being the highest-volume intermodal month in history, with it having the three highest-volume intermodal weeks in history for U.S. railroads. Carload volume for September 2013 was up 0.7 percent compared with the same month in 2012.
For the week ending September 28, 2013 carload volume was up 0.5 percent and intermodal volume was up 2.9 percent compared with the same week last year. Total U.S. rail traffic for the week was also up, 1.6 percent from last year.

Carload volume for the first 39 weeks of 2013 was down 0.9 percent from the same point last year, while intermodal volume was up 3.7 percent. For the first 39 weeks of 2013 total U.S. rail traffic was up 1.2 percent from the same point last year. Read More