Introducing new technology into the very conservative U.S. rail industry with new technology can be difficult. This was highlighted by the recent Wall Street Journal article (April 11, 2007) discussing Warren Buffet’s decision to invest in BNSF, in which the writer James B. Stewart remarked that innovation is not often encountered in the rail industry. Contrary to this sage observation, RailRunner is just such an innovation. Not only does RailRunner offer highly effective short haul intermodal solutions to short line, regional railroad and Class I rail operators in the US, but it can also offer practical solutions in other markets around the world. Germany’s highly reputable Frankfurt-based research firm Studiengesellschaft für den Kombinierten Verkehr (Research Association for Intermodal Transport or SGKV) recently concluded that RailRunner is the best solution for European and Central Asian intermodal issues to arrive on the scene in decades.

In a sponsored research effort, SGKV reviewed all of the traditional intermodal techniques as well as newer bi-modal technologies. The report reviews 15 developers of recent intermodal systems aimed at the European market (only three of which, including RailRunner, have been implemented commercially) and identifies several key advantages for RailRunner:

• RailRunner offers – in several dimensions that SGKV assessed – the most advanced technology.
• RailRunner can operate at the lowest overall cost per ton shipped in any markets that do not currently have a traditional intermodal terminal with high volumes.
• RailRunner provides by far the lowest tare (bogie plus chassis) weight – and thus, by far the greatest fuel efficiency – of the systems that have progressed past the prototype stage. The report notes that a 104-foot twin car (a six-axle railcar able to carry two 45-foot containers) weighs about 70 metric tons (77 short tons), while the two RailRunner chassis and three bogies required to carry two containers weigh just 21 metric tons (23 short tons).
• RailRunner bogies are articulated, with automated steering, thus causing less friction and wear and tear on wheels and axles, as well as air suspension built into the bogies, which provides superior ride quality. Both features also reduce energy consumption and noise levels, making the RailRunner system more “environmentally friendly.”
• RailRunner operates with the lowest capital investment for infrastructure and terminal equipment needs. (According to RailRunner estimates, no more than 20 percent of the investment required for traditional intermodal terminals.)
• The RailRunner operating model, under which the same organization would own and control both the chassis and the bogies, overcomes difficulties in prior business models wherein separate ownership often has caused conflicts that defeated the goal of interoperability.
• While the RailRunner system was developed to handle standardized international cargo containers, it is compatible with the swap-body system that is in widespread use within Europe. It also can operate in a pure trailer configuration.

The Wall Street Journal correctly observes that change is difficult to achieve in the very traditional rail industry. However, companies such as RailRunner are providing innovative, energy-efficient technology for world-wide intermodal rail transportation solutions in a global economy.