ANALYSIS OF CAR SERVICE RULES ORDERS, AND DIRECTIVES. THE IMPACT OF CAR SERVICE RULES ON UTILIZATION

This report presents an analysis of the impact of the car service rules and directives on car utilization. The analysis tabulates from the AAR TRAIN II history file the loaded and empty cycle times for the three-month period, July through September 1977, of all plain and equipped 50-foot boxcars built in the years 1974-76. This large sample includes cars moving under every type of rule except ICC Service Orders. The analysis shows RAILBOX cars achieve the best utilization and their utilization is most closely approached by Clearinghouse cars and cars moving under Rules 1 & 2. Boxcars moving under directives show the worst utilization. When cycles are separated between those where cars are unloaded off line, even sharper differences appear. Cars exempt from Rules 1 & 2 by ICC order (all of which bore short line reporting marks) have about the same empty cycle as non-exempt cars unloaded away from home and about two days longer than RAILBOX, suggesting that their higher rental costs handicaps them or that car distributors are not fully aware of their free loadability. All of these findings demonstrate that freer loadability leads to better car utilization.

• Corporate Authors:

  Association of American Railroads

  Freight Car Utilization Program, 1920 L Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20036
• Publication Date: 1979-5

Media Info

• Pagination: 19 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Box cars; Car distribution (Railroads); Car operations (Railroads); Car service rules; Car utilization (Railroads); Freight cars; Leasing; Management; Policy; Railcar ownership; Short line railroads; Statistical analysis
• Old TRIS Terms: Car cycles; Empty cars; Freight car distribution; Management policies; Railbox; Short line; Train ii
• Subject Areas: Administration and Management; Data and Information Technology; Freight Transportation; Policy; Railroads;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00322185
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: AAR R-369
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Feb 18 1981 12:00AM