By Karen E. Thuermer, AJOT If upward trends for transportation modes are any indication of an improving economy, it’s possible we are past the doldrums and moving towards better days. In fact, the Intermodal Association of North American (IANA) refers to the intermodal sector as “firing on all cylinders” in Second Quarter (Q2) 2010. A study published by IANA entitled “Intermodal Market Trends & Statistics Report” reports that intermodal volumes continued to accelerate through 2010, posting an overall 17.2 percent year-over-year increase during Q2. The report showed domestic containers rising 16.4 percent during the quarter and setting a new record high, while international container volume increased an impressive 20.9 percent. This was the first time in nearly four years that domestic container growth was surpassed by an increase in international (ISO) container volume. Although domestic container volume grew at a somewhat slower pace than international containers for the first time in recent years, the study emphasizes that these figures showed the 20th consecutive quarter of growth for domestic containers. In fact, going forward, domestic growth is expected to continue driving the train. The study predicts the North American domestic container fleet will climb well over 180,000 unites in 2010 as almost all fleet owners have announced significant adds to their container inventories. “This will no doubt support strong second half gains in domestic volume, though the outlook is tempered a bit by reported delays in container deliveries from China,” it says. “Nonetheless, the fundamentals are in place for continued strength in domestic intermodal demand.” Trailers also recorded a 5 percent gain during the quarter, but the IANA study expects them to continue their long-term downward trend later this year. “Overall domestic intermodal volume rose 13.2 percent, a gain strong enough to erase 2008/2009 volume losses and set a new record for the highest domestic intermodal loadings in a quarter,” IANA states. Inventory restocking likely played a major role in driving the large increase in intermodal volume recorded this quarter, IANA continues. During last year’s downturn, retailers aggressively cut inventories to the point where they were so low at the beginning of 2010 that they could not support even a modest rise in consumer spending. As a result, inventory replenishment has resumed and has become a key driver of intermodal growth. Although total intermodal shipments are still below pre-recession levels, they have significantly recovered. Trade Lane Growth The study indicates that performance on major intermodal corridors were a mixed bag with slower growth in some lanes and higher in others reflecting railroad marketing success in less traditional corridors. For example, the Southwest-Midwest corridor was the poorest performer of all high volume corridors, growing only 8.1 percent from the previous year. The report indicates that shipments from the Midwest to the Southwest were also particularly weak, advancing only 5.9 percent. This study indicates that the weak growth in this trade lane might be representative of the loss of share from southwestern ports to other ports on the West Coast. Other underperformers were the South Central-Southwest corridor, which barely managed to surpass last year’s levels. The study indicates that a change in empty ISO container strategy may have been the cause of the week growth. But shipments from the southwest to the South Central region jumped and healthy 18 percent. Loadings in the Northeast-Midwest lane also underperformed against the industry average although only slightly. Shipments of domestic containers in this lane outperformed the industry average, but international shipments growth was week, only 9.8 percent. Volume from the Midwest to the Northwest far outpaced the industry average, growing 38.0 percent from the previous year. The study indicates that almost all the s