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, 2026 reached 535663 carloads and intermodal units combined, up 4.9% year-over-year. Intermodal units grew 6.9% YoY to 301456, while carloads rose 2.4% to 234207.
Network Health
BNSF is green on speed at 25.1 mph and green on dwell at 21.7 hours. UP is green on speed at 24.7 mph and green on dwell at 19.5 hours. CSX is yellow on speed at 24.199404453141682 mph and green on dwell at 20.05 hours. NS is yellow on speed at 21.3 mph and yellow on dwell at 22.8 hours. CN reports green dwell at 17.43 hours but speed data is unavailable. CPKC is red on speed at 20.7 mph and yellow on dwell at 22.39 hours.
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
Diesel closed the week ending September 28 at 6.382 per gallon, down 2.25% week-over-week from 6.529 but up 15.17% month-over-month from 6.2908. Fuel surcharge adjustments effective October 1 will push most carriers higher: BNSF 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 holding steady at 76.
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 all AAR commodities for the week ending September 19 with a 15.1% year-over-year gain, reaching 23420 carloads. Petroleum and Petroleum Products also surged, up 12.5% YoY to 11976 carloads. On the downside, Grain fell 7.7% YoY to 21369 carloads, and Coal slipped 3.1% to 58171.
Lane Watch
Mobile, AL to Chicago, IL: a 100-ton boxcar of paper via CN (single-line routing, 915.5 miles) runs 9113.3 total, with line-haul of 8417.5 and fuel surcharge of 695.8 at 76 cents per mile. 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.