greyhounds The market was headed this way a long time ago until the government screwed things up. They restricted railroad trucking operations and forced intermodal rates higher so that they became non-competitive. The government also attacked freight forwarders who integrated logistics functions and greatly limited their operations.
The market was headed this way a long time ago until the government screwed things up. They restricted railroad trucking operations and forced intermodal rates higher so that they became non-competitive. The government also attacked freight forwarders who integrated logistics functions and greatly limited their operations.
I'll add the ignorant move of the ICC classifying freight forwarders as common carriers was the death blow to many..
The recievers of these goods chose to enter into an agreement with the RR's because they , Walmart, Target, Kroger, Amazon, etc wanted the flexibility to deliver, with their own trucks, to the multiple sites they have in any geografical area. They needed to control their enventorys with their own employees and trucks; or, as with smaller receivers, with the truckers they hired.
Juniata Man CSSHEGEWISCH In answer to the thread's title, probably because LCL service was discontinued years ago. NS is currently experimenting with a very limited LCL service by adding a TBOX of LCL freight to intermodal trains 215/216 between Chicago and Atlanta. CW
CSSHEGEWISCH In answer to the thread's title, probably because LCL service was discontinued years ago.
In answer to the thread's title, probably because LCL service was discontinued years ago.
NS is currently experimenting with a very limited LCL service by adding a TBOX of LCL freight to intermodal trains 215/216 between Chicago and Atlanta.
CW
A single box car of LCL shipments between a designated O D pair is barely more than a feeble attempt.
Back in the day of true LCL on the railroads - they had large warehouses to facilitate the business as well as, in many cases, dedicated local delivery services in the major metropolitan areas to provide door to door services. In the first part of the 20th Century, Blue Line Transfer was the B&O subsidiary that facilitated the pick up and delivery of LCL in the Baltimore/Washington metro area. From a article on the Blue Line Transfer in the 2nd Quarter 2021 issue of B&ORHS's The Sentinel - in 1929 37 Class 1 carriers operated 5861 trucks out of 399 terminals in support of their LCL businesses.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
ronrunnerWe have lost that has recent attempts have failed like produce express to Scectady have closed after only 6 years operation
No, we haven't lost it. The customer just has to now work through a middleman. If you ship LTL by FedEx, Yellow, Estis, and others they can, and do, use rail. Peaches and other produce still move by rail. But they go through carriers such as KLLM, Marten, etc. who use rail. Absent government interference, a supply chain will configue to its most efficient form. These intermediate carriers make the supply chain more efficient. There is no real advantage to the railroad itself getting in to the retail part of things.
It depends on one's definition of "door to door."
Railroads do provide such service - in carloads.
But the truth is that not many customers still exist for that kind of service.
The lumberyard in Milford, MI (long since gone, destroyed by fire) got boxcars of lumber delivered to their siding. A jelly factory (also long gone) there got cars of supplies as well.
The last siding in Milford was straight-railed several years ago. The station is gone as well, replaced by condos.
Almost every town had a coal yard that received several grades of coal for their various customers. Both the coal yards and the customers are ancient history.
The closest you'll get to door to door service these days is dedicated traffic, like auto parts.
Very few (if any) towns have any sort of facility to handle any other kind of traffic - team tracks are generally long gone. Fire trucks were often delivered by rail - now they just drive them to their destination.
I think that brokers are going to be the ones providing custom shipping - and likely in containers. If you want to ship your Rolls Kanardly from point A to point B by rail, that's going to be your solution. The railroads don't really want to talk to you otherwise.
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Make a phone call for a rate for originating railroad then another for line haul car lease from somebody like GE railcar then 2 calls for rail served warehouses on each end then 2 calls for drayage trucking on each end. This was not always the case as big railroads like the Pennsy owned huge warehouse terminals and had there own trucking companies and provided complete. Logistics packages. One call to your local freight agent and your load of peaches got to market. Pittsburgh and Cleveland and dozens of city's had huge rail served fresh food terminals that were rail served by special high speed freight trains with names like the Expediter and Western Maryland Mountain Storm that could unload 50 boxcars in one day . We have lost that has recent attempts have failed like produce express to Scectady have closed after only 6 years operation
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