The volume of rail freight carried in Canada totalled 27.7 million tonnes in May, an 8.2 per cent drop last year, said StatsCan Wednesday.
The volume of rail freight carried in Canada totalled 27.7 million tonnes in May, an 8.2 per cent decrease from the same month last year, said Statistics Canada Wednesday. In contrast, from May 2011 to May 2016, the total volume of rail freight carried in Canada in- creased 5.4 per cent.
In May, freight originating in Canada declined 7.7 per cent from the same month last year to 24.9 million tonnes.
Canada Railway Car Loadings: May 2016
In May, railcars loaded with fuel oils and crude petroleum in the western region were down 44.8 per cent from the same month last year. Wildfire in northern Alberta contributed to the decline.
Intermodal freight loadings were down 4.3 per cent year over year to 187,000 units. In terms of weight, intermodal traffic fell 4.1 per cent to 2.8 million tonnes, as a result of a decrease in shipments in containers and trailers on at cars.
Freight traffic received from the United States declined 12 per cent to 2.7 million tonnes, as a result of a 13.4 per cent drop in non-intermodal freight. Intermodal freight from the United States rose 5.2 per cent.