Rail traffic reflects more oil production, less coal-fired electricity generation

[Anonymous]

The record increase in U.S. crude oil production during 2012 and the significant decline in coal use for domestic electricity generation were reflected in the movement of those two commodities by rail last year. Crude oil and petroleum products accounted for the biggest increase in railcar loadings among commodities in 2012, while coal had the largest decline. Notwithstanding these changes, coal remained by far the dominant category of carload shipments, accounting for 41% of total carloads, compared to a 4% share for all petroleum and petroleum products combined.
Last year, the amount of crude oil and petroleum products delivered by rail increased 46% over 2011, or almost 171,000 carloads, according to the Association of American Railroads (AAR), which tracks movement of commodities by rail. Crude oil accounted for an estimated 38% of the combined deliveries in the oil and petroleum products category during 2012, up from 3% in 2009. The trade group says that crude oil was responsible for nearly all of the growth last year in carloadings in this category.
Read more at
http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=9851
 

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