BNSF Logistics has entered into a marketing and operations alliance with Autolog Corporation and The Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway Company, to introduce a Car-Rail service between Phoenix and Chicago, Minneapolis/St. Paul and New York City.
The service will be managed by Autolog's Car-Rail division and coordinated through BNSF Logistics' CarsOnTrack program.
The Car-Rail service will begin operations on March 8th, on a route from Phoenix to the three major metropolitan areas, Chicago, Minneapolis/St. Paul and New York City.
Over 250,000 who live in the Midwest and Northeast spend winter in the Phoenix and Tucson metropolitan areas. According to Myron Levine, president of Autolog, the options for transporting their personal vehicles are to drive it themselves or hire an independent trucking firm. The average cost of either is over US$800, with transit time via truck often exceeding two weeks.
Robert Sutton, director of operations for BNSF Logistics, said: "Clients who utilise the Car-Rail service receive a reliable, lower cost, safe and timely method of transporting their vehicles.”
The CarsOnTrack operation will provide sufficient fully enclosed auto-haulers to protect the vehicles, and the average transit time for the Car-Rail service to the Midwest will be approximately 7-10 days as opposed to 14-21 days for an independent trucking company. The cost to transport a normal-size car will start at US$450.
