FASTFRATE

[LrgCar]

spot on with the IM cost breakdown, thats why trucks cant compete with rail on Price....but service and delivery times is where OTR shines. This cycle just repeats itself, OTR gets saturated-->trucking bloodbath-->shippers turn to rail for even cheaper costs (and enjoy the profits on the way down)---> rail gets back logged because of the increased demand---> product/Freight gets delayed (and we are talking months of delays not days)---> shippers turn to OTR--->the survivors of the trucking bloodbath RAKE IN THE MULA---->OTR gets saturated because of the said "MULA"....and on we go.

Well said, one of the better ways to describe the cycle

 

[Shakey]

It's a bloodbath in IMDL as well, railways jacked rates same as OTR carriers now dropping them as fast to get volumes back. There is a few new entrants into the game as well the last couple of years with their own 53' assets (Pro-Formance, Giant Tiger, Paul's, & Iway). Railways even selling their boxes right now, some of these new entrants are now offering new boxes to use as storage.

 

[theman]

The big cost on the intermodal is the dray on each side, so if the IMCs in general are imbalanced, the railways help out by offering a cheap linehaul rate in the light direction ... if you don't get the containers positioned it becomes a big problem for everyone.

In the US, the rail-owned container program is shrinking quickly and has been for years. The rails don't want in on the intermodal container business. Canada is learning and more and more you'll see containers owned by IMCs. Intermodal works better here than in the US because we have relatively few major hubs so it's pretty easy to route. If I'm a shipper shipping within Canada long distance, I'm definitely choosing intermodal.