Lawrence Gross

The railroads have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. But volumes were already weak prior to the current crisis. What is the way forward?

The industry is being transformed by its adoption of the Precision Scheduled Railroading philosophy. Traffic is down thus far in 2019, but is a foundation being laid for growth?

The second quarter of 2018 saw a surge in growth for railroads in the United States. But have service and speed suffered as a result?

Carload volumes are stronger than they were last year but remain well below 2015's numbers. Intermodal shipments, meanwhile, are up considerably over last year.

A conjunction of adverse conditions has sent freight volumes plummeting. The challenge for railroads will be to remain competitive in a changing transportation landscape.

Although intermodal continues to grow, railcar traffic is slumping. Secular and cyclical trends suggest the outlook for the two segments is unlikely to change much in the near term.