The North American intermodal industry generates a reported $40 billion in revenue annually. Intermodal transportation and intermodal trucking — the movement of cargo in containers or trailers by more than one mode of transportation — bring in an estimated $22.5 billion in drayage revenue and $5.5 billion in revenue for third-party logistics companies.
IANA pointed out that globally, 95% of manufactured goods are eventually moved in a container. Intermodal trucking plays a vital role in getting many of those goods to the end customer.
“Intermodal connects the global supply chain of stakeholders – railroads, ocean carriers, ports, intermodal truckers and over-the-road highway carriers, intermodal marketing and logistics companies, and suppliers to the industry – moving billions of dollars in cargo every day,” IANA said.
The intermodal freight transportation market is forecast to see a compound annual growth rate of 8.27% between 2024 and 2029, according to Mordor Intelligence.
“When moving long distances, companies should consider alternate transportation modes as they evaluate emerging ways to cut freight costs and their carbon footprint,” Mordor Intelligence said. “Although trucking remains the most common means of domestic product shipment, intermodal freight transit offers freight savings and decreased emissions, particularly when delivering items over 500 miles or more.
“Intermodal can assist in reducing cargo handling, damage, and loss by optimizing each transport method’s strengths and efficiency, allowing freight to be moved more safely at a lower aggregate cost.”
Union Pacific said when goods are shipped between trucks and trains in domestic intermodal containers, the process is:
There are more than 180 intermodal trucking and transportation facilities in the United States, according to the Association of American Railroads. Many of these facilities are located in freight rail hubs like Chicago, Dallas, Atlanta, and Kansas City, Missouri, which receive goods moved inland from ports on the East, West, and Gulf coasts as well as cross-border from Canada and Mexico.
Freight railroads often tout their intermodal service as a competitive advantage. For example, in early May, Union Pacific announced that its new domestic intermodal service between Los Angeles and Chicago cut two days off the previous transit time.
“We are excited about this new product, which is part of our continuing effort to find new ways to meet our customers’ needs, while removing trucks off our nation’s highways and providing a consistent, reliable product,” said Kenny Rocker, Union Pacific’s executive vice president of marketing and sales.
“Intermodal freight shipping is a possibility for just about any shipper. With no requirement to have tracks at the origin or destination of your shipment, intermodal is highly accessible. Trucks handle the first and last mile of the shipment and you reap the benefits of using trains to handle the portion in between,” a Union Pacific article, “What Is Intermodal Shipping … and Why Should Shippers Care?” said.
Union Pacific said the benefits of intermodal freight shipping include:
At VCPB Transportation, we’re experts in intermodal shipping. Our strong relationships with all Class I rail and motor carriers enable us to bundle intermodal trucking into a single service with just one rate, saving customers time and money.
Our 40-foot intermodal container repositioning program helps ocean carriers reposition empty containers into revenue-producing freight, giving shippers capacity at a value. Our 53-foot domestic container program provides customers with access to more than 100,000 intermodal containers. Surge, spot, and committed pricing programs provide 53-foot intermodal trucking capacity for shippers of all sizes and needs, including temperature-controlled and hazmat.
And we constantly monitor all of our intermodal shipments — as well as over-the-road, overweight, specialized, and expedited freight – with real-time tracking achieved with our state-of-the-art tech stack.
Start shipping with VCPB Transportation today.
VCPB Transportation
600 Meadowlands Pkwy Secaucus, NJ 07094
(201) 770-0111
