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Re: A mental exercise on freight train efficiency
Author: ccutler
Date: 02-15-2007 - 15:54
Others would answer the question better but:
> in unit train service if your numbers are correct, perhaps the answer is yes.
> however, the following detract from the 'efficiency:'
> highways are much straighter so truck mileage is much lower
> nonunit trains need to be sorted: yards, switchers, etc add greatly to fuel usage.
Most important, fuel is only one cost input. Capital costs are much higher in railroading than in trucking. Buy a truck, drive to your customers and start a trucking company [oversimplification]; buy a train, well, not so simple.
> in unit train service if your numbers are correct, perhaps the answer is yes.
> however, the following detract from the 'efficiency:'
> highways are much straighter so truck mileage is much lower
> nonunit trains need to be sorted: yards, switchers, etc add greatly to fuel usage.
Most important, fuel is only one cost input. Capital costs are much higher in railroading than in trucking. Buy a truck, drive to your customers and start a trucking company [oversimplification]; buy a train, well, not so simple.
