Number 90 posted:The single-carload business is not being solicited any more. The payback does not justify the expense these days. It takes a lot of people to handle single car shipments from pickup to delivery. The shippers gave up on it, too. They can no longer call downtown to the local railroad agency, release a loaded car, and expect to have it picked up promptly.
For the most part, industrial spurs are, and will remain, unused. They don't even build tracks into new industrial parks any more.
I think it may not be that bad out here in the east, Tom.
Up here in the old rust belt the railroads still have a thriving business in many markets. While traditional businesses like warehouses, distributors or newspapers no longer ship by rail due to the evolution of trucking there are certainly a lot of businesses that still ship by rail. True, they are not one car shipments but one to five and they are switched at least daily.
Plastic pellets and liquid/bulk products such as corn sweeteners and chemicals as well as bulk frozen food shipments still ship best by rail. And the magic of computers replaced the carding of cars and the need for RR clerks.
Up in my neck of the woods the new (post 1960) suburban industrial area has enough single industry sidings to justify a small 75 car 5 track yard with a two trick crew assignment to work them. And this yard is an area that is ten miles from the second largest classification yard on the division.
Probably a good thread for someone in the RR shipping business like Juniata Guy to explain his end.
