Intermodal Rail Volumes Rise 6.9% as Metals and Petroleum Loads Lead, While Grain and Coal Fall

U.S. railroads handled 535,663 total carloads and intermodal units in the week ended Sept. 19, up 4.9% from the same week a year earlier, according to Association of American Railroads data. Intermodal units — the containers and trailers that carry consumer and manufactured goods — rose 6.9% to 301,456, while conventional carloads increased 2.4% to 234,207.