Intermodal Service Scorecard : Spring 2024 September | 4
CHART 1A
I . Grading the Railroads : Overview
The bottom line : Intermodal providers voted BNSF , CSX and UP as the top domestic intermodal providers in North America , with CN and CPKC bringing up the rear .
CHART 1B
Satisfaction scores : More than 90 % of asset- and non-asset-based IMCs were satisfied with the North American Class I railroads in the first half of 2024 ( Chart 1A ) and 78.6 % said service was better than six months ago ( Chart 1B ). Both totals are higher than in fall 2023 when 73.4 % were satisfied with the railroads and 61.2 % said service was better than six months ago . Many of the responses confirm the service metrics reported to the US Surface Transportation Board ( STB ). Between January and June , a daily average of 20.1 intermodal trains were held due to crew issues , equipment problems or other service disruptions , down from 22.1 trains one year ago and 56.1 trains during the first half of 2022 , according to the STB . The average number of intermodal railcars in revenue service that idled more than 48 hours fell to 1,046.4 in the first half of the year , compared with 1,207.1 last year and 1,720.25 in 2022 . While some IMCs remain skeptical about whether service will remain reliable when volume surges , the railroads have been able to absorb a 3 % to 4 % increase in domestic container volume this year without major hiccups .
Best-performing railroad ( s ): When asked to name the best railroad , CSX and UP were tied with 28.6 % of the vote , with BNSF in third at 16.1 % ( Chart 1C ). In the KPIs , BNSF received an overall score of 3.96 out of 5 , while CSX received 3.94 and UP 3.89 . In the average net promoter score , BNSF received a score of 8.24 out of 10 points , UP 8.16 and CSX 7.81 ( Chart 1D ). All three arguably were tied for the best-performing railroads , while the other railroads lagged .
CHART 1C
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