Swift Transportation and the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway announced they will offer seamless transportation services for perishable commodities.

Effective immediately, the two companies will initially provide seamless service for temperature-controlled commodities moving between the West Coast, the Midwest and the Southeastern United States. BNSF will provide boxcar transportation services for long-haul moves, while SWIFT will provide over- the-road transportation for short-haul moves. Both companies will coordinate any transload and cross-dock moves that may be necessary.
"Many shippers are hesitant to use a rail/truck transportation package because of the complexity of having to coordinate with multiple parties," said Chuck Schultz, BNSF executive vice president and chief marketing officer. "We hope to make the transportation process seamless by providing one point of contact to make bi-modal shipping easier and more economical. As a result of the opportunity in this market segment, we will be evaluating possibilities for expanding our service offerings."
Jerry Moyes, Swift chairman and CEO, noted that the new offering is an extension of the programs that Swift presently operate with BNSF: intermodal service between the Midwest, Texas and the West Coast, and an I-5 RoadRailer train operating between Los Angeles, Calif. and Portland, Ore.
The new service will not require additional capital expenditures on the part of the trucking company, which will draw on its current fleet of 530 refrigerated trailers. This operation will provide additional loads for Swift's regional and temperature-controlled fleets operating in the Midwest and Southeast.