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Weekly Intermodal Traffic Rises 14.1%
Intermodal traffic rose 14.1% last week from a year ago, the Association of American Railroads said.
Traffic for the week ended Saturday totaled 233,935 trailers and containers, led by a 15.9% gain in containers to 194,046 units. Trailers rose 6.4% to 39,859 units.
U.S. railroads originated 286,391 carloads for the week — up 10.2% from a year ago, AAR said in its weekly report.
Railroad volume is considered an important economic indicator. Intermodal traffic, which tends to be higher-valued merchandise than bulk commodities, uses trains for the long haul and trucks for the shorter distance at either end of the trip.
