Florida East Coast Railway rolls out new intermodal service and adds equipment

Jacksonville, Fla.-based Florida East Coast Railway (FECR), a 351-mile freight rail system on the state’s east coast, recently made two separate announcements. One had to do with an expansion of intermodal services between Charlotte, N.C. and various locations in South Florida and another was related to the company boosting its intermodal capacity through the addition of new equipment.

For the former, FECR said the intermodal service expansion will be offered through its Piedmont Express service that utilizes its own assets and runs five days a week.

FECR officials said that the two-day service between Charlotte and South Florida will call on multiple cities throughout Georgia and the Carolina’s to and from South Florida. And they added it will offer shippers various pickup and delivery options, including: door-to-door, ramp-to-door, and ramp-to-ramp.

FECR also noted that this new service offers shippers another option to move their freight to the growing South Florida market in an efficient and cost-effective manner.

“We are pleased to offer our reliable intermodal service to customers moving freight between the Carolinas and South Florida,” said James R. Hertwig, FECR President and CEO, in a statement. “On average, for every four southbound shipments arriving in South Florida, there is only one northbound shipment. This imbalance can be challenging; however, FECR’s Piedmont Express in FECR’s containers provides a cost-effective option for customers in the Carolinas.”

An FECR spokesperson told LM that FECR is committed to expanding its footprint and offering a wider range of services to shippers, adding that FECR has remained very focused on service, with a value proposition built on reliability, flexibility, and connectivity.

Intermodal equipment expansion: In an effort to increase its intermodal capacity, FECR said it has acquired 500 new 53-foot containers and 100 chassis, as well as 50 new refrigerated trailers to serve and meets the needs of its perishable market customers, which will all be in service by mid-October.

FECR said these new assets are in sync with its strategy to convert existing trailers to containers to provide double-stack transportation service for shippers, which is a strategy it has employed since 2010 as part of its focus on serving intermodal shippers. The containers and trailers have GPS technology for real-time tracking capabilities and also include systems with detailed information on operational performance and temperature levels.

“We continue to see positive growth in our intermodal business as customers from a variety of industry segments recognize the value we provide,” said Hertwig. “With the addition of these new units, we are well-positioned to meet the needs of the marketplace during the upcoming peak shipping season and beyond.”

When asked what drove the need for acquiring this new equipment, the FECR spokesperson said that the company has consistently invested in its infrastructure and equipment to ensure it is meeting current customer demand while being well-positioned for future growth.

“The biggest shipper/customer benefit of the new equipment is the availability of additional intermodal capacity,” the spokesperson said. “In regard to the refrigerated units, these represent FECR’s new service offering designed to meet the needs of the perishable goods market.”