FORT WORTH, Texas – The Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company (BNSF) and Norfolk Southern Railway Company (NS) today announced a plan to introduce a new coast-to-coast carload service assurance program for temperature-controlled commodities moving from selected cities in the Pacific Northwest (PNW), to the Midwest, Northeast and Southeast.
The service will begin Dec. 1, 2002.
With the program, shippers can purchase service assurance for a $500 premium. For each load of freight that does not reach its destination on time, BNSF and NS will reimburse shippers double their premium ($1,000).
Key origin and destination cities include:
PNW:
- Seattle, Wash.
- Tacoma, Wash.
- Pasco, Wash.
- Yakima, Wash.
Midwest:
- Chicago, Ill.
- Cleveland, Ohio
- Columbus, Ohio
Northeast:
- Philadelphia, Penn.
Southeast:
- Atlanta, Ga.
- Charlotte, N.C.
“We designed the program to attract shippers who have been reluctant to ship by rail in the past,” says Steve Branscum, BNSF group vice president, Consumer Products Business Unit. “Consistency and speed are critical for shippers moving temperature-controlled commodities. And as we’ve continued to meet our on-time goals in these lanes, we simply felt it was time to offer shippers an incentive to try rail.”
“This new partnership allows NS and BNSF to offer some of the fastest transit times in the industry for perishable rail shipments to destinations throughout the East,” says Don Seale, Norfolk Southern’s senior vice president, Merchandise Marketing. “It capitalizes on a renewed commitment by BNSF and NS to service consistency and reliability for food and consumer shipments.”
