Pacer Stacktrain, Union Pacific

Trains Magazine General Discussion
1

I know APL used to be one of Union Pacific’s biggest customers and now Pacer owns APL stacktrain. I was wondering if anyone knows any more information on these 3 companies or how many Pacer Stacktrains UP runs. I see quite a few on the Rochelle Webcam. Thank you

-Tom

2

UP no longer runs Pacer as dedicated trains. They’re just mixed in on UP standard service level intermodal trains. They also run on CSX in the east.

Pacer has about 25,000 boxes that they make available to the intermodal marketing companies.

http://www.pacerstack.com/
http://www.pacerstack.com/about/history_notlogged.html

3

I thought some other company bought APL (Oriental something-or-other maybe?), I always wondered what happened to them.

4

Mark,

NOL (Neptune Orient Lines) sold APL to Pacer International in 1999.

-Tom

5

NOL bought the shipping part of APL, but didn’t want to operate stack trains, so they sold that part of the operation.

6

It’s an interesting question if they could operate the stack trains.

There’s a legal thingy called “cabotage” that prevents a foriegn owned ship line, or airline, from hauling US domestic freight or passengers. That’s why, when CSX sold off Sea-Land to a Danish firm, CSX kept the ship routes from the Lower 48 to Alaska and to the US islands in the Carribbean. It’s also why you can’t fly British Air between Chicago and Los Angeles.

Now, I don’t know how this concept applies to land surface transport. Obviously, CP and CN move domestic US loads. So it’s a question. Anybody got an answer?

The last two “major” US Flag general cargo international ship lines were APL and Sea-Land. And the Clinton Administration let 'em both be sold off to foriegn interests.

7

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3h-XrGt7lko

Here ya go.

8

Many years ago, Grand Trunk ran into the cabotage restriction on its Muskegon-Milwaukee car ferry route. To get around it, the Grand Trunk Milwaukee Car Ferry Transportation Company was formed to operate the route, with GTW and PRR each owning 50%. While CN and CP both use their corporate image on their US lines, the lines are actually owned by their US-incorporated subsidiaries, such as SOO, IC, GTW, DMIR, etc.

9

And the restrictions on the maritime and aviation sectors are a bit different too. When CN bought Great Lakes Transportation, the parent of DM&IR, they also bought the shipping company Great Lakes Fleet. There is no problem operating the DM&IR as long as it is by an American subsidiary, and there is no problem owning the Lakers, what is a problem is that the CN in no way can operate the ships in Cabotage trades. What CN has to do is lease the ships to a US company (Key Lakes, Inc.) in which it has no financial interest, to operate the ships, it derives value from the ships solely through the lease payments.