
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, October 29, 1993                   TAG: 9310290149
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A-13   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: GREG EDWARDS
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

YOU COULD SAY RAILROADS ARE HAULING FREIGHT

U.S. railroads moved more freight last week than any previous week in history, led by the fourth recent weekly record in intermodal traffic, the American Association of Railroads reported Thursday.

The association estimated total freight traffic for the week ended Oct. 23 at 23.3 billion ton-miles, 2.2 percent more than the same week last year and 1 percent above the record of 22.9 billion ton-miles in the week ended Oct. 16.

Intermodal traffic set its fourth record in six weeks with 158,108 trailers and containers loaded, 9.5 percent more than last year.

Norfolk Southern Corp.'s intermodal loadings were up 11 percent compared with the 1992 period, said company spokesman Rob Chapman. It was not immediately clear if that was an NS record, he said.

For the first 42 weeks of 1993, intermodal loadings on all the nation's railroads were up 7.3 percent from last year.

The total of all car loadings for the period was estimated at 13,638,611, down 0.3 percent. But total traffic, estimated at 870.5 billion ton-miles, was up 1.6 percent.

"Most economists are reporting encouraging signs of growth in the economy," said Edwin L. Harper, association president. "This week's rail traffic numbers certainly bears that out."

by CNB