Grain shippers rate UP as top-performing railroad

Written by jrood
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For the second year in a row, Union Pacific was selected as the top-performing railroad by U.S. agricultural shippers in the third annual Soy Transportation Coalition Railroad Report Card.

The survey was completed anonymously by agricultural shippers of various sizes and scale of operations and was comprised of the same eleven questions from 2010 and 2011 categorized under on time performance, customer service and costs. For most questions, participants were asked to rate each of the seven Class 1 railroads on a scale from 1-10.

After combining the results from the eleven survey questions, Union Pacific received the highest overall rating. The company ranked first in seven out of the eleven questions. Railroads received, on average, a three percent higher score than in 2011.

Soy Transportation Coalition Rail Customer Satisfaction Index – Overall Ratings:
1.) Union Pacific
2.) BNSF
3.) CSX Transportation
4.) Norfolk Southern
5.) Canadian National
6.) Kansas City Southern
7.) Canadian Pacific

“We are pleased that grain and oilseed shippers are overall expressing increased satisfaction with the service received from our nation’s railroads,” explains Mike Steenhoek, executive director of the Soy Transportation Coalition. “Agricultural shippers particularly have been quite complimentary regarding the railroads’ response to last year’s record flooding and destructive weather events. Communication with customers was robust and repairs to the rail network occurred with great efficiency and precision. Rail customers took notice and were very appreciative.”

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