Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern today became the latest railroads to partner on new interline intermodal service.
UP and NS today said they would launch domestic service linking Louisville, Ky., with Los Angeles and Lathrop, Calif.; Seattle; Portland, Ore.; Salt Lake City and Houston beginning in mid-October.
The railroads will exchange the traffic via steel-wheel interchange in Kansas City, Kan., at UP’s new intermodal terminal. NS, meanwhile, is making terminal footprint changes to handle the service at its Louisville terminal, which traditionally has been focused on international intermodal traffic.
“Our customers want easier, more reliable freight solutions that they can depend on, and our robust service delivers that,” Kenny Rocker, UP’s executive vice president of marketing and sales, said in a statement today. “Enhancements to the newly expanded Kansas City Intermodal Terminal and Norfolk Southern investments in Louisville allow us to compete with trucks, removing thousands from the nation’s congested highways.”
NS Chief Commercial Officer Ed Elkins said the service will allow the railroad’s customers to have an alternative to trucking in a growing market.
“Our enhancements in the Louisville market reflect how intently we listen to our customers and translate their feedback into thoughtful planning and strategic infrastructure investments,” Elkins said in a statement.
The Louisville service will reach Kansas City via St. Louis.
In the past month BNSF and CSX announced an intermodal partnership to link the West Coast with destinations in the Southeast, as well as international service between CSX-served East Coast ports and BNSF’s terminal in Kansas City.
CSX and Canadian National also announced new interline intermodal service linking Canadian West Coast ports with Nashville, Tenn., via interchange in Memphis.
UP and NS have said that their proposed merger, if approved, will lead to faster, more reliable intermodal service due to increased steel-wheel interchange.
