No. of Recommendations: 1
Rail traffic plunged 11% between 2014 and 2024 — and the fall-off in coal is not entirely to blame. Even if you exclude coal altogether, volume still dropped by 1%.
Why the shift to trucks? “Some 66% of shippers receive on-time performance of 80% or better from trucking partners, compared to just 16% from railroads.”
Other annoyances include a lack of service guarantees and timely price quotes from railroads. BNSF Railway, for its part, has recognized the problem and created the Quantum premium intermodal service — which aims for 95% on-time performance — to combat the trucking threat.
open.substack.com - The berkshire beat junetrains.com - Report railroads must gain volume to remain relevant 