first mile

Bills could help small railroads build new track, bridges

The tax credit many small-business railroads depend on to help fund capital improvements has gotten a potential boost in Congress.

Bills introduced in both the Senate and House of Representatives would modify the Railroad Track Maintenance Credit, updating the credit for inflation and allowing expenditures on short-line track that has been acquired since 2015 to be included.

Known as 45G, the tax credit has been a key incentive for short lines to invest more of their own funds for upgrading track...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/bills-could-help-small-railroads-build-new-track-bridges

Rail data for the first mile and last mile would benefit shippers

Having federal regulators collect rail data related to first-mile and last-mile activity could help rail shippers greatly because it would measure the railroads’ ability to deliver shipments on time, Herman Haksteen, president of the Private Railcar Food and Beverage Association (PRFBA), said during a fireside chat Wednesday for FreightWaves’ Global Supply Chain Week.

The data that the Surface Transportation Board collects now on performance statistics for rail car velocity and terminal dwell...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/rail-data-for-the-first-mile-and-last-mile-would-benefit-shippers

Maersk transforming into global supply chain amphibian

Maersk's acquisition of Pilot Freight Services is another step toward transforming the business from ocean shipping to an end-to-end global supply chain

Delays. Miscommunications. Contract disputes. These are just a few of the throes of having a fragmented supply chain, which is the case for just about any company trying to ship goods globally.

It makes sense — to connect every touch point of the global supply chain would require infrastructure, visibility, software integrations and a host of other features along every step of the journey, a seemingly impossible task. But one company is getting very, very close.

Those acquainted with the supply...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/maersk-transforming-into-global-supply-chain-amphibian

STB keeps busy with mergers, last-mile data, reciprocal switching

A photograph of a KCS locomotive rolling on train tracks.

As the Surface Transportation Board considers the proposed merger between Kansas City Southern and Canadian Pacific, on the forefront of stakeholders’ minds will be how the two will transition their operations to serve one network, according to two transportation attorneys speaking at FTR’s virtual conference last week.

The KCS-CP merger is one of many issues that could keep board members busy through the end of this year and into the next.

Stakeholders will be watching how KCS (NYSE: KSU) and CP...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/stb-keeps-busy-with-mergers-last-mile-data-reciprocal-switching

Surface Transportation Board seeks input on first and last mile

A photograph of a train passing by a rail crossing on a sunny day.

The Surface Transportation Board is seeking comments from shippers, carriers and others on first-mile/last-mile (FMLM) service, which occurs when railcars are moved between a local railroad serving yard and a shipper or receiver facility.

The federal agency wants to know whether it should examine further FMLM issues beyond the information that the railroads already give to shippers. STB “is particularly interested in knowing whether metrics to measure FMLM service that are not now being reported...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/surface-transportation-board-seeks-input-on-first-and-last-mile

Mercado helps importers nail the first mile — supply chain’s longest mile

A product that arrives on your doorstep in four days takes four months to get to the United States.

Bridging that gap between analog supply and digital demand will create the biggest competitive advantage in the supply chain. Customers have spent years adapting to the model pioneered by Amazon in the final mile.

Now the company to model is Zara. Zara turns over its entire store inventory on average every eight weeks. It has connected its store POS to the design team, and the designers are...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/mercado-helps-importers-nail-the-first-mile-supply-chains-longest-mile

Viewpoints: 11 supply chain predictions for 2021

The views expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of FreightWaves or its affiliates.

By Rick Zullo, Equal Ventures

January is in the books. That leaves 11 more months in 2021, a year that hopefully will not be as disruptive to the global supply chain as the previous one, in which the COVID-19 pandemic brought the world economy to a standstill. Trade lanes shut down, production lines halted and products spoiled as companies around the world...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/11-supply-chain-predictions-for-2021

Baton driving out first-/last-mile costs for long-haul drivers

The 2021 FreightTech 25 welcomed several newcomers to the ranking of the most innovative and disruptive companies in the freight industry, and trucking technology startup Baton was one of them.

Landing at No. 13, San Francisco-based Baton makes software that optimizes the first and final mile of long-haul truck routes using a network of 24/7 drop zones and local drivers. Truckers drop off and pick up their cargo at the secure zones, which are near major metropolitan areas.

Founders Andrew...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/baton-driving-out-firstlast-mile-costs-for-long-haul-drivers