JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — CSX Intermodal President James Hertwig says new technologies and improved cooperation between railroads and truckload carriers are producing new opportunities for both transportation modes.
Hertwig made his comments recently in Orlando at the Truckload Carriers Association annual convention. He was part of a panel that included the moderator, Lana Batts, managing partner, Transport Capital Partners, LLC; John Hickerson, senior vice president and chief marketing officer, FFE Transportation Services, Inc.; and Patrick Quinn, president and co-chairman, U.S. Xpress Enterprises, Inc.
The participants noted that the truckload industry faces long-term challenges that include fuel costs and driver shortages – factors that continue to make intermodal transportation an attractive option. “Railroads want to work with the truckload carriers,” Hertwig said.
“Intermodal transportation combines the efficiency of rail with the flexibility of trucks,” Hertwig said. “CSX Intermodal has undertaken a number of initiatives to make intermodal service more accessible than ever before.”
He observed that intermodal terminals are more trucker-friendly thanks to advanced gate processing. “New ramp-to-door-to-ramp services allow truckload carriers to reposition empty equipment automatically out of backhaul markets in pursuit of a new load,” Hertwig added, also acknowledging the introduction of CSX QuickQuote, a 24-hour online quoting and tendering tool for door-to-door service aimed at brokers.
BNSF Railway Co. and CSX Intermodal recently expanded their current intermodal container service to include several new locations in the Southeast. BNSF and CSXI will now serve Charleston, S.C.; Savannah, Ga.; and Miami, Orlando and Tampa, Fla., in addition to current eastern hubs at Atlanta, Ga.; Jacksonville, Fla.; and Charlotte, N.C.
— Edited from a PRNewswire-FirstCall news release
