The total size of the North American rail equipment fleet was up slightly during the first quarter of 2018. The total equipment count was 2,083,915, for an increase of 0.2 percent.
The three largest segments during the quarter were covered hoppers (28.4 percent), tank cars (20.6 percent) and gondolas (11.1 percent).
Four car groups increased from the last quarter, led by intermodal, up 1.7 percent, and IM flats, up 1.3 percent. Covered hoppers were up 1.0 percent, and miscellaneous equipment increased by 0.1 percent. Declines during the quarter were led by EOTs, down 3.0 percent, and locomotives, down 1.6 percent.
The total count of equipment in the revenue-earning fleet currently stands at about 1.65 million, up by 0.2 percent from the previous quarter. Covered hoppers and flats led gains at 1.0 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively, while box cars decreased the most (0.6 percent). 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.
Data Source: Railinc Umler System. Data represents all equipment units on files, including pre-registered, restricted and scrap units.
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