Union Pacific busy redesigning its Houston operations
July 26th, 2020
July 24, 2020 - TRA Newswire -
Houston and Chicago are two of the major markets that Union Pacific Railroad is concentrating on to make its operations more efficient, according to UP President and CEO Lance Fritz during a 2nd quarter earnings call on Thursday.
Houston has a reputation as being a rail bottleneck and one of the busiest rail crossroads in the country with Union Pacific, BNSF Railway and Kansas City Southern crossing paths along with a busy seaport district that generates a substantial amount of rail traffic.
The changes in Houston include consolidating UP intermodal facilities to one location and expanding the Englewood Yard, northeast of downtown Houston, with more switching capability to run longer trains.
UP executives said they are looking for niches to take more market share away from trucks by strategic investments and through its own service products. A UP subsidiary, Loup Logistics, already provides door-to-door intermodal shipping, transload and logistics services for customers. “I wouldn’t be surprised if there are other investments we make that look more like the activity Loup does, where you’re providing ancillary services from the railroad, but they are primary services to a customer. And it makes us a more valuable supplier, it makes us stickier and opens up even more markets for us,” according to Fritz.
UP is now running about a third fewer trains on its network, albeit longer trains. "That translates into a service product where there is less network congestion on average anywhere you look," said Fritz. He said it also means there are fewer delays from trains waiting to pass at sidings on single track lines.
Houston and Chicago are two of the major markets that Union Pacific Railroad is concentrating on to make its operations more efficient, according to UP President and CEO Lance Fritz during a 2nd quarter earnings call on Thursday.
Houston has a reputation as being a rail bottleneck and one of the busiest rail crossroads in the country with Union Pacific, BNSF Railway and Kansas City Southern crossing paths along with a busy seaport district that generates a substantial amount of rail traffic.
The changes in Houston include consolidating UP intermodal facilities to one location and expanding the Englewood Yard, northeast of downtown Houston, with more switching capability to run longer trains.
UP executives said they are looking for niches to take more market share away from trucks by strategic investments and through its own service products. A UP subsidiary, Loup Logistics, already provides door-to-door intermodal shipping, transload and logistics services for customers. “I wouldn’t be surprised if there are other investments we make that look more like the activity Loup does, where you’re providing ancillary services from the railroad, but they are primary services to a customer. And it makes us a more valuable supplier, it makes us stickier and opens up even more markets for us,” according to Fritz.
UP is now running about a third fewer trains on its network, albeit longer trains. "That translates into a service product where there is less network congestion on average anywhere you look," said Fritz. He said it also means there are fewer delays from trains waiting to pass at sidings on single track lines.