2012 Rail Trends - Railway Association of Canada

Economy
22 012
Despite financial uncertainty in key
markets around the globe, Canada
stood out among leading (global)
industrialized countries with a relatively healthy,
export-rich economy in 2011. Railways were
instrumental in solidifying this status.
As Canada’s economy continues to rally
towards pre-recession levels, the nation’s
railways are relied upon more heavily than ever
before to facilitate growth and trade. In recent
years, rail has become the preferred mode of
ground transportation, facilitating more than
$75 billion in trade, and reinforcing its role as
the backbone of an integrated supply chain that
has helped move Canada’s resources to global
markets.
The most common barometer for measuring rail workload performance
is revenue ton-miles (revenue tonne-kilometres) or RTM (RTK),
which is the movement of one revenue-producing ton of freight the
distance of one mile (kilometre). It is calculated by multiplying the
weight of paid tonnage by the total distance (in miles or kilometres) it
has been transported.
This section highlights the statistical data of key areas that point to
the current growth of rail in relation to the Canadian economy.