Rail Alliance Offers One-Stop U.S.-Mexico Shipping

ByDeborah Austin Offering shippers single-quote billing and coordinated cross-border services to and from Mexico, CSX Transportation has teamed with Union Pacific Railroad (UP) and Mexican railway company TFM (Transportacion Ferroviaria Mexicana) to launch the Access Mexico Via CSX program. Through the program, customers of all three railroads can get Mexico/U.S. shipping information through one phone call, use any of the railroads to get billing information for the entire system, and receive a single bill in U.S. dollars. The program initially applies to shipments of sheet steel and coils. A full range of commodities is expected to be added to the program by 2003. Also included are guides on conducting business in the two countries, as well as multiple warehouse and transload options. Union Pacific, based in Omaha, Neb., and TFM, located in Monterrey, Mexico, have a previously announced program alliance, MexDirect. CSX Transportation is a unit of CSX Corp., Richmond, Va.