(The Associated Press circulated the following story on March 30.)
FORT WORTH, Texas — BNSF Railway Co. will levy fuel surcharges based on mileage beginning Jan. 1.
BNSF, a unit of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp., said it was the first railroad to base the surcharge on mileage instead of a customer’s freight transportation bill.
John Lanigan, BNSF executive vice president, said the mileage-based charge was more direct and accurate. He said many trucking companies made a similar switch in the early 1990s.
The mileage-based charge will apply to shipments that begin and end on BNSF track and interline shipments where each carrier bills the customer separately. That covers about 75 percent of the railroad’s volume.
The other 25 percent of shipments will continue to be covered by BNSF’s current surcharge, the company said.
BNSF operates 32,000 miles of track in 28 states and two Canadian provinces.
Burlington Northern shares fell $1.99 or 3.6 percent, to $52.97, in trading Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange.