Railroad Service Report Update – Jul ’20
Weekly service report updates for Class 1 railroads provided by the Surface Transportation Board (STB) were recently updated with values spanning through the end of Jun ’20. Total cars online continued to rebound from the record low levels experienced throughout the second week of May, reaching a 12 week high level, overall. Grain rail transportation speeds remained higher on a YOY basis for the 69th consecutive week however ethanol rail transportation speeds finished below previous year levels for the first time in the past 17 weeks.
Total Railcars Online:
Jul 4th week ending total railcars online totaled 961,000, finishing 0.3% above the previous week and reaching a 12 week high level. Total railcars online declined to a record low level throughout the second week of May, prior to rebounding slightly over more recent weeks. Online railcar figures have been compiled since the fourth quarter of 2014. Total railcars online remained lower on a YOY basis for the 86th consecutive week, however, finishing down 6.6%.
Grain Rail Transportation:
Jul 4th week ending grain train speeds of 24.2 MPH finished 10.5% higher YOY and 7.2% above historical average grain train speeds, remaining at a record high seasonal level. The YOY increase in grain train speeds was the 69th experienced in a row.
Ethanol Rail Transportation:
Jul 4th week ending ethanol train speeds of 21.6 MPH finished 0.3% below previous year levels and 6.0% below historical average ethanol train speeds. The YOY decline in ethanol train speeds was the first experienced throughout the past 17 weeks.