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 the week ending October 17, 2026 reached 540135 carloads and intermodal units combined, up 8.5 percent year-over-year. Intermodal units alone grew 12.6 percent to 308015.
Network Health
BNSF is green at 25.0 mph system speed and 22.5 hours dwell. UP is green at 24.5 mph and 19.9 hours dwell. CSX is yellow at 24.128098773482634 mph and 20.76 hours dwell. CPKC is yellow at 22.4 mph and 19.8 hours dwell. NS is red at 19.9 mph and 25.3 hours dwell. CN dwell is green at 17.29 hours but 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
Diesel for locomotives closed at 6.352 per gallon on October 26, up 1.21 percent week-over-week from 6.276. The 12-week trend shows a rise from 5.257 on August 10 to current levels. Next-month fuel surcharges effective November 1 climb across carriers: BNSF to 61 cents per mile from 45, UP to 84 from 68, NS to 95 from 74, CSXT to 64 from 43, CN to 95 from 76, and CPKC holding flat at 94.
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 posted the largest absolute weekly move at 14.5 percent year-over-year, reaching 23306 carloads the week ending October 17. Grain followed with 7.0 percent growth to 22486 carloads. Petroleum and Petroleum Products grew 8.8 percent to 11546 carloads, while Nonmetallic Minerals fell 3.2 percent to 32428.
Lane Watch
Jacksonville, FL to Indianapolis, IN, 100-ton boxcar of paper: CSXT single-line routing covers 958.5 miles with a tariff total of 9002.24 dollars. Fuel surcharge of 412.16 dollars applied at 43 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.