Highlights

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1. The volume of cargo carried by Canadian railways increased in June, as both commodity loadings in Canada and traffic received from the United States rose.
2. Total freight traffic originating in Canada and received from the United States increased to 24.4 million metric tonnes, up 11.2% from June 2009.
3. Compared with June 2009, freight loaded in Canada rose 8.2% to 21.8 million metric tonnes in June. The Canadian railway industry’s core transportation systems, non-intermodal and intermodal, both contributed to the rise in cargo loaded.
4. Non-intermodal freight loadings, which are typically carried in bulk or loaded in box cars, rose 7.4% to 19.5 million metric tonnes. The commodity groups with the largest increases in tonnage were potash, iron ores and concentrates and coal.
5. In contrast, several commodity groups registered declines. Leading the drop in tonnage was wheat, followed by wood pulp and other cereal grains.
6. Intermodal freight loadings, transported through containers and trailers loaded onto flat cars increased 15.1% to 2.4 million metric tonnes in June, compared with the same month the previous year.
7. Rail freight traffic coming from the United States rose to about 2.6 million metric tonnes, up 44.7% from June 2009. Both non-intermodal and intermodal freight transported from the United States contributed to the increase.
8. From a geographic perspective, 54.2% of the freight traffic originating in Canada was in the Western Division of Canada, with the remainder loaded in the Eastern Division. The Eastern and Western Divisions, for statistical purposes, are separated by an imaginary line running from Thunder Bay to Armstrong, Ontario. Freight loaded at Thunder Bay is included in the Western Division while loadings at Armstrong are reported in the Eastern Division.