Union Pacific seeks to sweat its assets

[Bob]

Union Pacific seeks to sweat its assets

Railroad expects improving volumes in fourth quarter

Union Pacific seeks to sweat its assets - FreightWaves

UP expects longer and heavier trains in its future as it seeks to take more intermodal market share away from trucks.

www.freightwaves.com

With rail volumes expected to improve year-over-year in the fourth quarter and into 2021, Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) will seek to fine-tune its deployment of precision scheduled railroading (PSR) by continuing to focus on asset productivity. This includes taking measures such as lengthening trains farther and speeding up the network.

UP expects “positive year-over-year growth” in the fourth quarter. Coupled with positive volumes in the first quarter, the company expects full-year volumes to be down by around 7%.

 

[Bill Anderson]

From the article: “Locomotives are going to be way more productive. Our train length, I see 10,000 feet, OK? I see our car freight velocity up another 5% or 10%. So I think that we are just starting,” said Union Pacifc (UP) Chief Operating Officer Jim Vena during the company’s third-quarter earnings call Thursday.

Nearly two mile long freight trains. That will be very interesting in places like the Blue Mountains, the Donner Pass line over the Sierras, and the Feather River canyon where curves around mountain sides can block radio communications with DPU's.