(Union Pacific issued the following press release on February 3.)
OMAHA — Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern Railway Co. are expanding their “Blue Streak” intermodal service to link Northern California and Northern Nevada with Chicago and destinations on the Norfolk Southern system in the northeastern United States and the Atlanta, Ga., area.
Blue Streak’s expedited service, noted for its near 100 percent on-time performance, offers a competitive transportation alternative to trucks in this major corridor.
Customers can select from Blue Streak’s three service levels. The highest level, called the SuperFlyer, offers guaranteed equipment availability and guaranteed on-time delivery.
The new service connects intermodal terminals in Lathrop, Calif., and Sparks, Nev., to Harrisburg and Morrisville, Pa.; E-Rail, N.J., near Elizabeth, and Austell, Ga. The service provides sixth morning availability eastbound between Lathrop and Norfolk Southern destinations, five days per week, and provides fifth and sixth morning availability westbound, seven days per week. Service between Sparks and these destinations offers shippers fifth morning availability eastbound, and fourth/fifth morning service westbound.The UP-NS interchange occurs in Chicago for Premium and SuperFlyer service levels.
The Sparks, Morrisville and Austell corridors are the latest expansion of UP’s and NS’s Blue Streak service that was launched in the fall of 2001. That service connects Los Angeles and southeastern states.
Union Pacific Corporation is one of America’s leading transportation companies. Its principal operating company, Union Pacific Railroad, is the largest railroad in North America, covering 23 states across the western two-thirds of the United States. A strong focus on quality and a strategically advantageous route structure enable the company to serve customers in critical and fast growing markets. It is a leading carrier of low-sulfur coal used in electrical power generation and has broad coverage of the large chemical-producing areas along the Gulf Coast. With competitive long-haul routes between all major West Coast ports and eastern gateways, and as the only railroad to serve all six gateways to Mexico, Union Pacific has the premier rail franchise in North America. The Corporation’s trucking operations include Overnite Corporation, which owns less-than-truckload carriers Overnite Transportation and Motor Cargo.