Edit post

Edit your reply below.

Post Body
Enter your post below.
Broncoman: I bet if you check the appropriate short lines' web sites, you'll find that many if not all accept 286K cars, at least as far as the rice elevator. You're correct that it's cheaper to upgrade 10 miles of track (assuming no bridges) than it is to build an elevator. But you don't need to build an elevator -- you can store the grain in the old elevator next to your now-defunct short line, then truck to the main line and use a simple jackscrew to load the car. Or, if you're moving a lot of grain, build a simple loading facility. Many main-line elevators built in recent years have no storage capacity at all; they merely are a transloading point and most of the cost is a track long enough to hold 220 cars (110 empties on one side become 110 loads on the other). Because all grain starts in a truck, it can easily stay there a few more miles. Grain is a business of tons and pennies. Most of the decisions on how to handle it turn on a few pennies a ton, but since there's lots of tons, even a penny a ton matters very quickly.
Tags (Optional)
Tags are keywords that get attached to your post. They are used to categorize your submission and make it easier to search for. To add tags to your post type a tag into the box below and click the "Add Tag" button.
Add Tag