WEEKLY KEY METRICS:

Weekly RTMs vs. Prior Year

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CP reports carload data on a weekly basis to the Association of American Railroads (AAR). The links above contain the carload data provided to the AAR as well as the same data re​organized to reflect the line of business categories used by CP for financial reporting purposes (including total RTMs).

Carload and RTM data is published every Monday by 2pm Eastern Time.

CP reports train speed, terminal dwell and cars on-line on a weekly basis. We would note that the definitions CP uses to calculate these performance measures are not directly comparable to the definitions used by other Class 1 railroads and/or the AAR. Please refer to the Definitions tab for the details of how CP’s performance metrics differ from the definitions used by the AAR.

These measures represent only some of the indicators of railroad performance. Readers are therefore cautioned not to rely solely on this information as an indication of CP’s overall performance, financial or otherwise, as it may be misleading when viewed in isolation.​

How do AAR Groups relate to CP Line of Business?

AAR Group CP Line of Business
​1 ​Grain Grain
2 Farm Products, Ex. Grain ​Grain
3 Metallic Ores Metals, Minerals & Consumer Products
4 Coal Coal
5 Crushed Stone, Gravel and Sand Metals, Minerals & Consumer Products
6 Nonmetallic Minerals Fertilizers & Sulphur (90%), Metals, Minerals & Consumer Products (10%)
7 Grain Mill Products Grain
8 Food and Kindred Products Grain (85%), Metals, Minerals & Consumer Products (15%)
9 Primary Forest Products Forest products
10 Lumber and Wood Products Forest products
11 Pulp, Paper, and Allied Products Forest products
12 Chemicals Potash (50%), Energy, Chemicals & Plastics (40%), Fertilizers & Sulphur (10%)
13 Petroleum Products* Energy, Chemicals & Plastics
14 Stone, Clay and Glass Products Metals, Minerals & Consumer Products
15 Coke Coal
16 Metals and Products Metals, Minerals & Consumer Products
17 Motor Vehicles and Equipment Automotive
18 Iron and Steel Scrap Metals, Minerals & Consumer Products
19 Waste and Scrap Materials Metals, Minerals & Consumer Products (90%), Energy, Chemicals & Plastics (5%), Forest products (5%)
20 All Other Carloads Metals, Minerals & Consumer Products
21 TC on Chassis Intermodal
21 TC w/o Chassis Intermodal
* Petroleum products includes commodities such as crude oil, liquefied petroleum gases, fuel oil, asphalt, gasoline, lubricant oils & greases, and other refined petroleum products.

Definitions

CP uses the following definitions for performance metrics (click icon to learn more)

Revenue Ton-Miles (RTM)

Revenue Ton-Miles (RTM)

The movement of one revenue-producing ton of freight one mile.

Carloads

Carloads

Revenue-generating shipments of containers, trailers and freight cars.

Train Speed

Train Speed

Train Speed measures the line-haul movement from origin to destination. The average speed is calculated by dividing train-miles by total hours operated, excluding yard and local trains, passenger trains, maintenance of way trains. System-wide average train speeds are given for the following train types:

  • Intermodal
  • Manifest
  • Multilevel
  • Coal Unit
  • Grain Unit
  • All trains

Terminal Dwell

Terminal Dwell

Terminal Dwell is the average time a car resides within terminal boundaries expressed in hours. The measurement begins with a customer release, received interchange, or train arrival event and ends with a customer placement (actual or constructive), delivered or offered in interchange, or train departure event. This will exclude stored, bad ordered, and maintenance of way cars.

Cars on line

Cars on line

Cars On Line is the average of the daily on-line inventory of active freight cars. Articulated cars are counted as a single unit. Stored cars, heavy bad order cars, program cars, maintenance of way cars, private cars on customer tracks and cars located on adjacent short lines are excluded.

Cars on Line figures are reported by car type for the following car types:

  • Box -> A,B,R
  • Covered Hopper -> C
  • Gondola -> E,G
  • Intermodal -> P,Q,S
  • Tank -> T
  • Multilevel -> V
  • Open Top Hopper -> H,J,K
  • Other -> L, F

And by car ownership:

  • System Car: Owned by the railroad on which it is located
  • Foreign RR: Owned by a railroad other than the one on which it is located
  • Private: Owned by a non-railroad (i.e., has a car initial that ends in "X") and not leased to a railroad

Definition Changes

As our company transforms and changes, we continue to look for ways to provide better visibility into the drivers of CP’s performance. Below are some key definition changes that have taken place in recent years.

Cars On Line (Q2 2020)

Beginning June 1, 2020, CP amended its definition of "Cars On Line" in order to match our internal monitoring and performance measures. The revised definition will also better align with other Class 1 reported Cars On Line data. CP’s Cars On Line definition will no longer include inactive cars stored on CP lines, nor private cars stored on private lines.

Previous definition – Cars On Line: ​​Cars On Line is defined as the average of the daily on-line inventory of freight cars. Articulated cars are counted as a single unit. Cars on private tracks (e.g., at a customer's facility) are counted on the last railroad on which they were located. Maintenance of way cars are excluded.

New definition – Cars On Line: Cars On Line is defined as the average of the daily on-line inventory of active freight cars. Articulated cars are counted as a single unit. Stored cars, heavy bad order cars, program cars, maintenance of way cars, private cars on customer tracks and cars located on adjacent short lines are excluded.

A spreadsheet showing the impact of these changes on our historical results can be downloaded HERE.

Pension Accounting (Q1 2018)

Beginning January 1, 2018, CP adopted a new accounting standard for the presentation of net periodic pension cost and net periodic post-retirement benefit cost. CP will report its financial results according the new accounting standards beginning in Q1 2018.

The accounting standard change requires all components of net periodic benefit costs other than current service costs to be reported outside of operating income.

The change in presentation affects CP’s operating ratio and operating income, but does not change net income, earnings per share, or cash.

CP filed a restatement of prior periods which can be found HERE. For restatement data in Excel format please click HERE

Revenue Categories (Q1 2017)

In Q1 2017, CP simplified its Line of Business structure, reducing the number of commodity groups from 12 to 9 (details in the table below). A spreadsheet showing the impact of these changes on our historical results can be downloaded HERE.

OLD STRUCTURE NEW STRUCTURE
 1  CANADIAN GRAIN
 2  US GRAIN
 1  GRAIN
 3  COAL  2  COAL
 4  POTASH  3  POTASH
 5  FERTILIZER & SULPHUR  4  FERTILIZER & SULPHUR
 6  FOREST PRODUCTS  5  FOREST PRODUCTS
 7  CHEMICALS & PLASTICS
 8  CRUDE
 6  ENERGY, CHECMICALS & PLASTIC
 9  METALS, MINERALS & CONSUMER PRODUCTS  7  METALS, MINERALS & CONSUMER PRODUCTS
10  AUTOMOTIVE  8  AUTOMOTIVE
11  DOMESTIC INTERMODAL
12  INTERNATIONAL INTERMODAL
 9  INTERMODAL

Employee Counts (Q1 2016)

In Q1 2016, CP amended its definition of "Employees."  CP's prior employee definition reflected only full-time employees who had worked more than 40 hours in a pay period; as our business continues to change and evolve, the company has determined that a better and more fulsome definition should capture all employees regardless of the number of hours worked. 

The definition of workforce – the metric most commonly referenced by management – remains unchanged.

Previous definition - Employee: ​An employee is defined as an individual, including trainees, who has worked more than 40 hours in a standard biweekly pay period. This excludes part time employees, contractors, and consultants.

New definition - Employee: An employee is defined as an individual currently engaged in full-time or part-time employment with CP.

  • Workforce is defined as employees plus contractors and consultants.​

A spreadsheet summarizing the impact to CP's historical employee counts can be found HERE

Expense Reclassification (Q2 2014)

Billings to third parties for the recovery of costs incurred for freight car repairs and servicing have been reclassified from “Purchased services and other” to “​Compensation and benefits” and “Materials” in order to match the billings with the costs incurred on behalf of the third parties. Total operating expenses are unchanged as a result of this reclassification.

A spreadsheet showing the impact of these changes on our historical results can be downloaded HERE

Performance Metrics (Q3 2013)

On September 1, 2013 CP updated its definitions for terminal dwell and train speed to better reflect how operational performance is tracked and measured by management.  As a result of these updates, CP’s performance measures are no longer comparable to the metrics reported by other Class 1 railroads on the AAR’s Railroad Performance Measures website.

Train Speed
Updated CP Definition AAR Definition

Train Speed measures the line-haul movement from origin to destination. The average speed is calculated by dividing train-miles by total hours operated, excluding yard and local trains, passenger trains, maintenance of way trains. System-wide average train speeds are given for the following train types:

  • Intermodal
  • Manifest
  • Multilevel
  • Coal Unit
  • Grain Unit
  • All trains

Train Speed measures the line-haul movement between terminals. The average speed is calculated by dividing train-miles by total hours operated, excluding yard and local trains, passenger trains, maintenance of way trains. System-wide average train speeds are given for the following train types:

  • Intermodal
  • Manifest
  • Multilevel
  • Coal Unit
  • Grain Unit
  • All trains
Terminal Dwell
Updated CP Definition AAR Definition

Terminal Dwell is the average time a car resides within terminal boundaries expressed in hours. The measurement begins with a customer release, received interchange, or train arrival event and ends with a customer placement (actual or constructive), delivered or offered in interchange, or train departure event. This will exclude stored, bad ordered, and maintenance of way cars.

CP’s Major Yards:

  • Calgary, AB
  • Chicago, IL
  • Edmonton, AB
  • Montreal, QC
  • Moose Jaw, SK
  • St Paul, MN
  • Thunder Bay, ON
  • Toronto, ON
  • Vancouver, BC
  • Winnipeg, MB

Terminal Dwell is the average time a car resides at the specified terminal location expressed in hours. The measurement begins with a customer release, received interchange, or train arrival event and ends with a customer placement (actual or constructive), delivered or offered in interchange, or train departure event. Cars that move through a terminal on a run-through train are excluded, as are stored, bad ordered, and maintenance of way cars.

CP’s Major Yards:

  • Calgary, AB
  • Chicago, IL
  • Milwaukee, WI
  • Montreal, QC
  • Moose Jaw, SK
  • St. Paul, MN
  • Thunder Bay, ON
  • Toronto, ON
  • Vancouver, BC
  • Winnipeg, MB