I have learned from the responses to my original post. Thank you all!
I find that traffic can be measured by trains or tonnage. My interest was in how complex the road was to operate at its peak traffic. That would seem to equate to the number of trains per day or per week..
I appreciate the data that Earl posted.
How likely is that the number of trains in the early 1890s exceeded the traffic in April 1952? .It seems likely the tonnage in 1952 was greatest. The number of trains in the 1890s might have been higher as a results of the smaller engines.