Rail Pulse is Steel Wheel Logistics' weekly read on what actually moved on the U.S. rail network last week. Every figure is sourced from public AAR, STB, EIA, and USDA filings and linked at the bottom. Every word of analysis is anchored to those numbers — no estimates, no extrapolation.
The Number
Total rail traffic for the week ending September 19 reached 535663 carloads and intermodal units, up 4.9 percent year-over-year. Intermodal units alone rose 6.9 percent to 301456, while carloads gained 2.4 percent to 234207.
Network Health
BNSF is green at 25.5 mph system speed and 22.3 hours dwell. UP is green at 24.3 mph and 19.8 hours dwell. CSX is yellow at 23.935481249583802 mph and 21.44 hours dwell. NS is red at 21.1 mph and yellow at 24.5 hours dwell. CPKC is yellow at 21.5 mph and yellow at 22.99 hours dwell. CN dwell is green at 18.2 hours; speed data unavailable.
Color codes: green = speed ≥24 mph or dwell <22 hrs; yellow = speed 21–24 mph or dwell 22–26 hrs; red = speed <21 mph or dwell >26 hrs. Source: STB EP724 weekly Class I performance filings.
Fuel Watch
Heating diesel futures closed at 6.529 per gallon on the week ending September 21, up 3.88 percent week-over-week and 14.62 percent month-over-month from 5.462. The 12-week trend shows sustained upward pressure: prices have climbed from 4.578 on July 6 to current levels. October fuel surcharges spike across the network: BNSF moves from 60 to 73 cents per mile, UP from 68 to 81, NS from 75 to 91, CSXT from 43 to 60, CN from 76 to 92, and CPKC holds steady at 76 cents per mile.
Want to see how a fuel-surcharge change hits a specific lane? Run a free rail rate quote — FSC is broken out per leg.
Commodity Spotlight
Metallic Ores and Metals led weekly commodity moves with a 15.1 percent year-over-year surge to 23420 carloads for the week ending September 19. Petroleum and Petroleum Products followed at 12.5 percent gain, while Grain fell 7.7 percent to 21369 carloads. In grain-specific markets, shuttle bids for BNSF September delivery command a 100 dollar per car premium to tariff; October BNSF shuttles rise to 500 dollar per car premium.
Lane Watch
Lake Charles, LA to Charlotte, NC via covered hopper for 100 tons of plastic totals 9347.14 in line haul and fuel surcharge across 990.1 miles. The tariff routes BNSF 216.8 miles at 60 cents per mile fuel surcharge, then NS 773.3 miles at 75 cents per mile, with one 250.0 dollar interchange fee. Run an indicative estimate at steelwheellogistics.com/tools/rail-rate-quote.
Pricing a specific carload move? Run an indicative estimate through the live rail rate calculator. Already have cars on the ground? The demurrage calculator uses current Class I rate structures, and the transload directory lists rail-served terminals nationwide.
Sources
- AAR Weekly Rail Traffic Report
- STB Class I Weekly Performance Data (49 CFR 1250)
- EIA U.S. Weekly Retail On-Highway Diesel Average
- USDA AMS Grain Transportation Report
Rail Pulse is published every Tuesday morning, after the AAR Weekly Rail Traffic Report releases. We pull, validate, and compose — no figures are introduced beyond what these sources publish.