Hard Red Spring Wheat Marketing: Effects of Increased Shuttle Train Movements on Railroad Pricing in the Northern Plains

Abstract

Despite the widespread adoption of shuttle train grain elevators and their potential for reducing rates for grain transport, few studies have evaluated their impact on railroad pricing. The aim of this paper is to assess railroad pricing behavior as well as empirically examine the impact of shuttle train movement on hard red spring wheat transport from North Dakota over time. Ordinary least squares estimation of the pricing model has rate per ton-mile as a dependent variable and supply and demand determinants as regressors. Intermodal competition and shuttle trains were found to have played a significant role in rate reduction over time.