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March 18, 2026|Class I

AAR: North American Rail Volume Up Slightly Through Week 10

Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor
(UP Photograph)
(UP Photograph)
North American carload and intermodal traffic for the first 10 weeks of 2026 (ending March 14) was up 2.4% from the prior-year period, according to the Association of American Railroads’ (AAR) latest rail traffic report. The United States, Canada and Mexico all experienced gains.

North American rail volume on nine reporting U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads came in at 6,849,595 carloads and intermodal units for the 10-week period ending March 14, 2026, the AAR reported March 18. Cumulative volume in the U.S. was 4,977,338 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, up 1.9% from the same point last year; in Canada, 1,599,541 carloads and intermodal units, up 1.9%; and in Mexico, 272,716 carloads and intermodal units, up 18.3%.

Results were similar through the first nine weeks of this year (ending March 7, 2026).

For the week ending March 14, 2026, U.S. Class I railroads carried 508,737 carloads and intermodal units, rising 1.1% from the same week last year, according to the AAR. That comprised 228,299 carloads, up 1.0% from 2025, and 280,438 containers and trailers, up 1.1% from 2025.

Six of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase for the week ending March 14, 2026, compared with the same week in 2025. They included grain, up 3,890 carloads, to 25,060; chemicals, up 1,837 carloads, to 34,966; and petroleum and petroleum products, up 1,088 carloads, to 10,688. Commodity groups that posted declines included coal, down 3,618 carloads, to 57,825; metallic ores and metals, down 1,584 carloads, to 17,987; and forest products, down 684 carloads, to 7,816.

For the first 10 weeks of 2026, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 2,222,692 carloads, a 5.0% increase from the same point last year; and 2,754,646 intermodal units, dipping 0.5% from last year.

North American rail volume for the week ending March 14, 2026, on nine reporting U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads totaled 330,589 carloads, down 0.8% from the same week last year, and 368,448 intermodal units, up 1.7% compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America came in at 699,037 carloads and intermodal units, up 0.5%.

For the week ending March 14, 2026, Canadian railroads reported 88,636 carloads, a 4.7% decline, and 72,706 intermodal units, a 0.5% drop-off compared with the same week last year.

Mexican railroads reported 13,654 carloads for the week ending March 14, 2026, falling 4.6% from the same point last year, and 15,304 intermodal units, gaining 31.8%.