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 Dec ’21. Total cars online remained at a three year high seasonal level throughout the week ending Jan 1^st however grain and ethanol rail transportation speeds each remained below previous year levels.

Total Railcars Online:

Jan 1^st week ending total railcars online totaled 1,000,600, finishing 3.0% above previous year figures and 1.5% above pre-pandemic seasonal levels. Total railcar online figures finished slightly below recent two year high levels but remained at a three year high seasonal level.

Total railcars online reached record low levels following the significant declines in manufacturing experienced during the early stages of COVID-19. Manufacturing has rebounded to levels slightly above pre-pandemic seasonal figures for the fifth consecutive month throughout Nov ’21, reaching a two and a half year high level, overall.

Grain Rail Transportation:

Jan 1^st week ending grain train speeds of 22.2 MPH finished 7.7% below previous year levels and 1.9% below historical average grain train speeds. The YOY decline in grain train speeds was the 16^th experienced in a row.

Ethanol Rail Transportation:

Jan 1^st week ending ethanol train speeds of 22.1 MPH finished 7.7% below previous year levels and 3.5% below historical average ethanol train speeds. The YOY decline in ethanol train speeds was the 14^th experienced throughout the past 15 weeks.