The RMI RailConnect index, which culls data from 347 out of more than 500 small carriers in North America and compares against the same week a year earlier, suffered a setback even as volumes reported by large rail lines appear to be stabilizing.

RMI does not provide explanations, but severe winter weather has hit a number of areas in the Great Plains and Canada in the past two weeks, which could have cut into certain small carrier loadings more than it would have hit the data for larger railroads.

RMI's year-over-year drop for the latest week exceeded by about a full percentage point the declines in January, which previously marked the lows for the year in short line traffic.

In actual shipments, the latest week showed 91,251 shipments, down about 10 percent from a month ago and nearly to the 2009 low of 90,237 for the final week of January.

The index showed declines in all short line cargo categories from the 2008 week. However, train hauls of motor vehicles and heavy equipment gained in actual shipments from recent weeks, in line with signs from large-carrier data that vehicle loadings are picking up from their lowest levels.

Short line raw volumes in paper, lumber and forest products, and chemicals also appear to be edging mildly higher in recent weeks.

Source:  Journal of Commerce On-Line, March 27, 2009