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Rail & Intermodal
Rail & Intermodal
The latest news, analysis, and developments affecting rail transport globally. Rail transport in the United States is dominated by privately held Class I railroads such as BNSF Railway, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern Railway and Union Pacific Railroad. Canadian Pacific and Canadian National Railways also operate in the United States.
News & Analysis
28 Sep 2018
By improving connectivity in the harbor through more on-dock rail, smoother hand-offs from the vessel to rail, and more timely and accurate data flow, West Coast ports will offer shippers a more attractive package for shipping discretionary cargo through their gateways to the eastern half of the United States, Los Angeles and Long Beach port executives agree.
26 Sep 2018
Front-loading, probably prompted by concern about tariffs, has affected US intermodal transport this peak season, as well as ocean transport, creating a quieter rail September. However, shippers should note there are some signs of conditions heating up in a key section of the United States that could be a harbinger.
24 Sep 2018
Vancouver, Canada’s largest container port, until now has been limited in its capacity to grow by a lack of surge capacity at its rail operations, which serve eastern Canada and the US Midwest.
20 Sep 2018
The future looks bright in Savannah for beneficial cargo owners. Volume is increasing, market share is growing, and Georgia Ports Authority officials have a strong vision — including a bold TEU goal — to continue the upward momentum by expanding services and fixing its shortcomings to keep its place as the top port in the US Southeast.
20 Sep 2018
The China-Europe rail services have been growing rapidly as shippers seek a price/time middle ground to that offered by costly-in-comparison and faster air cargo services to cheaper but slower ocean routing.
18 Sep 2018
The biggest disruption is for truckers traveling Interstate 95 through the Carolinas. Flooding has shut down most of I-95 in North Carolina, except for a nine-mile stretch.
18 Sep 2018
Precision railroading’s supporters argue that by running longer trains and eliminating waste, shippers will receive a higher level of service. Critics argue it prioritizes shareholders over service.
13 Sep 2018
The hurricane headed for the Carolinas as of Thursday, with the ports of Savannah and Virginia having reduced exposure.
12 Sep 2018
Revenue from 53-foot trailer-on-flat-car (TOFC) moves in the North America is up in a big way this year, so far, through August. But is 53-foot TOFC revenue an accurate leading indicator of overall domestic intermodal demand?
11 Sep 2018
The two projects will improve rail transport across Bangladesh, a more-direct route, with time and tariff savings likely for shippers.
10 Sep 2018
Whether shippers moving goods through the US Southeast and Mid-Atlantic see delays and elevated truck rates for days or for weeks largely hinges on exactly where Hurricane Florence makes landfall and with how big of a wallop.
10 Sep 2018
Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust handles the majority of India’s container trade and, hence, the government is keen on achieving speedier freight movement to/from through terminals there.
07 Sep 2018
An axiom argues, “Necessity is the mother of invention,” and there’s no better example of that than what tight North American truck capacity has prompted.
04 Sep 2018
Historically, Russia attracted Asia-Europe cargo largely destined for Northern Europe. But now Russia wants another piece of the Asia-Europe transport pie.
31 Aug 2018
Decades of truck-oriented Brasilia administrations and a bias against rail created a vulnerable trade transport system. The spring truckers’ strike exposed it, and months later trade logistics has yet to recover.
30 Aug 2018
CSX's steelwheel interchange alternation leaves the affected shippers with no easy, inexpensive substitutes.
28 Aug 2018
The proposed facility where containers from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will be transferred to intermodal trains would be a boon to beneficial cargo owners and freight transportation interests for several reasons. But there's also a not-insignificant environmental benefit.
27 Aug 2018
The capacity challenges described here are not unique to railroad networks and terminals; they are persistent through the US supply chain. Further, while some solutions lie far in the future, there are several initiatives that could improve rail/intermodal service overnight.
24 Aug 2018
US intermodal demand continues to increase at a substantial rate, and in response railroads are deploying more equipment, technology, and people. But will that response be able to meet cargo demands this peak season?
24 Aug 2018
Bharat Mumbai Container Terminals, which has handled about 150,000 TEU as of August 2018, this month added nine, new rubber-tire gantry cranes, bringing the total cranes to 27, PSA India officials said.
22 Aug 2018
In the United States’ tight surface capacity market, the operative phrase in supply chain management is “minimize the truck transport variable,” and Georgia’s new inland port, the Appalachian Regional Port, aims to do that, and more.
21 Aug 2018
Perhaps nowhere in the world, save India, is a critical mass of demand and resources coming together to produce a more-promising trade future than in Mexico. But to maintain that take-off status, Mexico will have to solve major infrastructure shortcomings, as well as address longstanding trade security issues.
20 Aug 2018
Port Miami is making a statement. New cranes, a better truck gating system and transloading facilities, and access to Interstate 95 mean the port has the infrastructure for global trade. And Miami has one other tangible that many stakeholders in container shipping will notice. Certainly other ports will.
18 Aug 2018
Terminal de Conteineres de Paranaguá (TCP), also known as Paranaguá, is in an annual race with another port for the title of “global chicken export port king,” and its officials are not subtle regarding where they want to finish each year.
17 Aug 2018
So far, the Port of Tampa and Port Miami are only seeing small cargo volumes, but shippers looking to cut travel time and costs for cargo sent across the US-Mexico border may increasingly choose the sea route, if the conventional land-based route’s delays don’t diminish.
16 Aug 2018
Western Canada has been “behind the curve” in developing inland ports compared with the US West Coast and South Atlantic regions. However, that will change with Ashcroft's expansion.
15 Aug 2018
These are relatively minor changes in destination terminals and don’t eliminate any existing service, although it will require some decisions on how to route cargo for the best price.
15 Aug 2018
Looks can be deceptive. Terminal operators, a very visible component of container shipping, are often the first to be criticized by BCOs and truckers when there are delays in delivering cargo. However, they have no control over the various transport modes that bring cargo to them.
15 Aug 2018
Officials concluded that instead of a sudden, sweeping policy change, the port will work toward reducing free times for all "export containers" handled via inland container depots (ICDs) to six days from seven days and, depending on the progress, a further reduction will be considered.
14 Aug 2018
Record US imports, combined with constraints on intermodal and already tight truckload capacity, point to one outcome for US spot market truck rates.
14 Aug 2018
There is a lot of potential volume out there for intermodal to tap, if it could only solve the interchange dilemma. Instead, the sector seems to be moving in the opposite direction.
13 Aug 2018
For those shippers and intermodal market companies trying to figure out how to handle cargo movement through Chicago on lanes in which interline service will be eliminated, the options are hardly ideal. But there are options.
09 Aug 2018
In an era in which considerable, new intermodal business is there, US railroads argue they need to balance the interests of investors and shippers. Shippers argue there hasn’t been a balance.
09 Aug 2018
US chemical producers knew a sector boom would create logistics challenges. But what they did not anticipate was other growing sectors putting extreme pressure on US trucking as well, with a huge spillover to intermodal rail.
08 Aug 2018
Containers were one of only five items among the original 284 items granted a reprieve by the US working group consisting of nearly a dozen federal agencies.
Commentary
US shippers lose if US railroad regulations are approved
The factors behind North America’s intermodal acceleration
China’s Asia-Europe rail subsidies — a two-edged sword
Why the US should let freight rail innovate
Reading the trailer tea leaves