Rail traffic for U.S. railroads fell 4% for the week ending Jan. 3, 2026, according to statistics from the Association of American Railroads.
Volume for the week was 404,293 carloads and intermodal units, with 192,665 carloads, down 2.8% from the corresponding week a year earlier, and 211,628 containers and trailers, down 5.1%.
Only chemicals, 2.3%, and grain, 0.9%, improved from the previous week.
The week ending Jan. 3 is counted as a 53rd week of 2025, and per AAR protocol is excluded from the standard 52-week year-end figures.
Those year-end, 52-week figures show a total volume of 25,564,430 carloads and intermodal units, a 1.5% increase over 2024. The 11,508,797 carloads for the year and 14,055,633 intermodal units were also 1.5% increases over the preceding year.
For the year, seven of 10 carload types finished ahead of 2024 led by grain, 5.2%, and coal, 3.1%. Motor vehicles and parts ended narrowly ahead at 0.7%. The biggest decliners were forest products, 1.6%, metallic ores and metals, 1%, and petroleum and petroleum products, 1.6%.
North American traffic for the week, as reported by nine reporting U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads, was 557,552 carloads and intermodal units, down 3.9% from the corresponding week a year ago. That includes 279,924 carloads, down 2.9%, and 277,628 intermodal units, down 4.9%. The year-end volume for North America was 35,187,052 carloads and intermodal units, a 1.4% increase over 2024.
Canadian volume for the week included 78,588 carloads, down 2.3% from the corresponding week a year ago, and 55,805 intermodal units, down 9.7%. The final 2025 traffic in Canada was 8,387,041 carloads and intermodal units, up 2% from 2024. In Mexico, the week’s traffic included 8,671 carloads, down 10.7%, and 10,195 intermodal units, up 43.1%. The year-end total for Mexico was 1,235,581 carloads and intermodal units, down 5.5% from 2024.
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