The total size of the North American rail equipment fleet was down slightly during the first quarter of 2020. The total equipment count was 2,128,745, for a decrease of 0.2 percent.
The three largest segments during the quarter were Covered Hoppers (29 percent), Tank Cars (21 percent) and Gondolas (11 percent).
Three car groups increased from the last quarter, led by Covered Hoppers and Tanks, both up 0.7 percent. EOTs and Hoppers lead declines, down 3.9 percent and 1.7 percent, respectively.
The total count of equipment in the revenue-earning fleet currently stands at about 1.66 million, down by 0.2 percent from the previous quarter. Tanks led gains, up 0.7 percent. Box Cars and Open Hoppers decreased the most, down 1.6 percent and 1.4 percent, respectively.
The revenue-earning fleet is a subset of the North American rail fleet that is largely composed of freight cars that can be used in interchange service and against which an interline waybill can be placed. The revenue-earning fleet of freight cars is made up of six sub-fleets: box cars, covered hoppers, flats, gondolas, open hoppers and tank cars. It excludes locomotives, intermodal trailers and containers, maintenance-of-way equipment and end-of-train devices.
Data Source: Railinc Umler System. Data represents all equipment units on files, including pre-registered, restricted and scrap units.
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