USDA AgTransport Weekly Grain Car Order Fulfillment Report: Oct 2, 2026

USDA Grain Car Order Fulfillment Data Shows Regional Divergence Across Rail Networks

The U.S. Department of Agriculture released its weekly grain car order fulfillment report for manifest service, tracking placed, filled, and unfilled railcars across major freight networks for the week ending October 2, 2026. The dataset, drawn from official Socrata JSON records published on the USDA AgTransport open data platform, details logistics bottlenecks and fulfillment rates for carriers including CPKC, Union Pacific, BNSF, CN, Norfolk Southern, and CSX.

Carrier Performance Metrics Vary by Railroad

Performance metrics varied sharply by carrier during the first week of October. CPKC recorded 2,681 placed cars, 4,263 filled cars, and 1,118 total unfilled cars. Union Pacific reported 1,178 placed cars, 1,901 filled cars, and a backlog of 99 unfilled cars.

BNSF logged significant volume with 491 placed cars, 2,019 filled cars, and 643 unfilled cars. Canadian National (CN) reported 601 placed cars, 444 filled cars, and zero unfilled cars across all tracked categories. Norfolk Southern recorded 23 placed cars, 23 filled cars, and zero unfilled cars, while CSX reported 8 placed cars, 7 filled cars, and 1 unfilled car.

State-Level Grain Transport Metrics

State-level breakdowns highlight localized demand centers across the Midwest and Plains. CPKC operations in North Dakota showed 209 placed cars, 817 filled cars, 184 unfilled for up to 10 days, 872 unfilled for over 10 days, and 1,056 total unfilled cars, according to a submission date of October 7, 2026. In the KCS region, CPKC reported 2,345 placed, 2,465 filled, and 25 total unfilled cars.

BNSF operations in North Dakota logged 188 placed cars, 878 filled cars, 162 unfilled for up to 10 days, 64 unfilled for over 10 days, and 226 total unfilled cars. In Montana, BNSF recorded 84 placed, 442 filled, 179 unfilled up to 10 days, 101 unfilled over 10 days, and 280 total unfilled cars.

In Minnesota, UP recorded 170 placed, 120 filled, and 31 total unfilled cars.

AgTransport Provides Logistics Visibility for Agricultural Handlers

The AgTransport reporting system provides critical logistics visibility for agricultural commodity handlers and grain processing networks.

USDA Updates Manifest Service Performance Data Weekly

The USDA continues to update its open data platform weekly, providing stakeholders with verified figures on manifest service performance.

Frequently Asked Questions About Grain Car Order Fulfillment

What does the USDA manifest service report measure?

The report tracks the weekly performance of freight railroads in placing, filling, and leaving grain car orders unfilled across specific state and regional corridors based on official USDA datasets.

Which railroad reported the highest total unfilled car count in early October 2026?

CPKC recorded the highest total unfilled count with 1,118 cars, largely driven by backlogs exceeding 10 days in North Dakota.

How frequently is the AgTransport grain car fulfillment data updated?

The dataset is published weekly by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, with recent state-level submissions logged through October 7, 2026.