Railex LLC is adding a third weekly East Coast bound refrigerated train from its Delano, California, facility, according to a report by The Packer.
The move comes in response to rising demand and diesel prices.
“We started hearing last fall that (trucking) equipment and containers were becoming hard to find,” Steve Poindexter, director of business trade development and national accounts, was quoted as saying in The Packer.
The new schedule is expected to begin on 15 June – just three years after Railex launched the California to New York route, the report said.
“We’ve had huge increases in every commodity, and we’ve actually been able to put more commodities on board than we had originally thought we could,” said Mr Poindexter.
Railex plans to add another train from California to the Southeast during the first quarter of 2012, according to Mr Poindexter.
In five year’s time, the company aims to offer five trains a week from Delano to New York.
The Railex service transports a number of fruits and vegetables including; citrus, table grapes, stone fruit, celery, broccoli and leafy greens, as well as cheese and wine, among other products.
“We’re getting shipments from as far east as Nogales,” Mr Poindexter said.
In the past four years Railex claims its rail service from the Delano facility – when compared to using truck-trailer rigs – has reduced fossil fuel usage by more than 32m gallons and lowered carbon dioxide emissions by 640,000 tonnes.
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