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Does anybody know that Global III just Opened?

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Although I agree that its nice to have a new intermodal ramp out in the "wide open spaces" of Rochelle, you have to think about the economics that it causes. <br /> <br />The expensive part of an intermodal move is the dray portion. It costs 2-3 times more per mile to move a trailer/ container on the highway than on the rail ( I know of what I speak, its how I earn my beer & donut $ each day.) So, lets say you move that traffic so that it ramps out in Rochelle vs. Global 2 or 3. That means that you've added approx $150 in cost to truck it out there. Does anyone honestly think that UP is going to give a $150 discount on the rail rate to offset that? They might at first to incent some business, but ongoing, nah. So, the cost just went up by $150. Who pays that. The intermodal provider? Well, yes, initially, but since their entire margin isn't usually that big, given the competitive nature of the business, they need to try to pass it along to the customer, or the piece of business will become unprofitable and they'll walk away from it, or they'll find a different way to get it there (ie BNSF.) So you go to the customer and say, "Hey, I need an extra $150 bucks from you because some RR decided to build a ramp out in the boondocks." What do you think the customer's response will be? I'm guessing that their response won't include reaching for the checkbook. This is what people in the intermodal business have been telling UP since the day that they announced this project and its location at Rochelle.
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