While various freight trends have seen numerous stops and starts in 2010, intermodal transportation is not one of them, according to the results of the third quarter Market Trends report from the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA).
In the third quarter, IANA stated that third quarter intermodal loadings—at 2,995,043—were up 20.3 percent year-over-year. This was ahead of the second quarter’s 2,829,971 and behind the first quarter’s 3,019,310.
“Intermodal activity, particularly from the international-driven side, is somewhat of a leading indicator as to what the expectations are for the economy,” said Tom Malloy, IANA Vice President of Member Services, in an interview. “A driver for intermodal’s continued momentum is the optimism—and confidence—by supply chain managers in bringing materials in from overseas.”