On this page
1. Commodity
Provide a clear commodity description.
Rail pricing/equipment can be commodity-specific.
Also identify:
- hazardous status,
- STCC if known,
- food-grade,
- dimensional/heavy,
- temperature-sensitive.
2. Origin
Exact rail-served facility if available.
Include:
- city/state,
- industry/facility,
- serving railroad,
- siding status,
- transload if needed.
“Chicago” is not enough for a carload quote.
3. Destination
Same questions:
- rail served?
- serving railroad?
- short line?
- transload?
Interchange/routing may depend on the exact industry.
4. Volume
Rail economics depend heavily on volume/frequency.
Provide:
- cars per shipment,
- cars per week/month/year,
- seasonal pattern,
- unit train potential,
- one-time/project load.
5. Railcar type
If known:
- boxcar,
- hopper,
- tank,
- gondola,
- flatcar,
- centerbeam,
- private/special car.
If unknown, describe the freight/loading method and let equipment selection follow.
6. Weight and dimensions
For each car/load:
- net cargo weight,
- gross railcar weight if known,
- dimensions for dimensional cargo,
- center of gravity/securement data for project freight.
7. Who supplies equipment?
Railroad equipment? Private leased/owned cars? Third-party equipment?
Private cars can introduce registration/loading-authority requirements.
8. Loading/unloading
How long? What equipment? How many cars can facility hold? Can multiple cars be spotted at once? Any hours/restrictions?
This affects local-service and demurrage exposure.
9. Routing/service requirement
Need:
- fastest practical,
- lowest cost,
- specific interchange,
- single-line preference,
- transit commitment,
- special handling?
10. Accessorial expectations
Potential:
- switching,
- demurrage,
- weighing,
- diversion,
- special train,
- storage,
- car order/release issues,
- dimensional clearance.
11. Intermodal quote inputs
For intermodal:
- origin/destination ZIP,
- ramps,
- container size,
- weight,
- pickup/delivery,
- commodity,
- service level,
- dray needs.
12. Project/high-wide
Provide:
- drawings,
- actual dimensions,
- weight,
- center of gravity,
- lifting points,
- securement concept,
- origin/destination tracks.
Clearance approval may drive the route.
Minimum useful first pass
If you're new to rail, start with:
- commodity,
- annual volume,
- origin address,
- destination address,
- weight per shipment,
- whether either site has rail track,
- timing.
That is enough to determine what questions come next.
Bottom line
A useful rail quote starts by defining the rail operating problem, not just the miles.
Related:
Ready for a rail quote?
Send the commodity, both facilities, the volume, the car type and who is supplying the equipment, and we will price the lane against the facts rather than the averages.
Request a Freight Quote